Vampire's Call
by Copperpelt
Summary: After the battle with Alexander, things have died down. People in the city no longer fear for their lives now that the killings have stopped. But all good things have to end. As Shun finds a way to deal with his problems, Alice finds some of her own beginning to manifest as well. But a dark storm is also brewing in the distance, one that will result in bloodshed. SEQUEL! R&R PLZ!
1. Changing Seasons

_~O~_

Zoran stared up at the massive, gothic-style mansion before. It was silhouetted against the night sky, making it look forewarning and menacing. But rather than feel fear at the ominous site, Zoran felt himself seething in hatred of the place. He wrinkled up his nose in disgust.

"Never did I think I would come back here," he said aloud to himself, "At least, not on my own free will." A cool breeze flew past him, making his ankle-length black cloak flutter in the wind. With the chill that the air carried, anyone would be able to tell that the summer months were coming to an end, and that fall would soon take over. _The seasons aren't the only thing that's about to change, _Zoran thought to himself.

His lips curved up into a twisted grin. Behind him stood Jessie and Alexander. The two Vampires that had recently joined his side stared up at the mansion in front of them. Looks of awe were plastered on their faces, which was a normal reaction for anyone who didn't know of what kind of cruel acts took place beyond those stone walls.

If they knew what kind of monster lurked in the halls of this mansion, they would run away in disgust. It sickened Zoran at just how many dark secrets this mansion held that nobody else knew about, secrets that he had been withholding for his entire life. _But that's about to come to an end, isn't it?_

The thought filled him with a sense of satisfaction. "Um, Sir? Might I ask what we are doing here?" Alexander suddenly asked from behind. Without turning around and meeting the blond-haired Vampire's gaze, Zoran told him, "I'm here to take care of a…..Of a personal matter of mine. Neither one of you will be of any assistance tonight. I should be able to handle all of this own my own."

It was more like Zoran had to handle this on his own. What lay behind the walls of the mansion were his demons to face. And with the downfall of those demons, his plan could move further on into action when he obtained what he needed. This was his fight.

Zoran took in a deep breath of the cool night air and felt its crispness as it filled his lungs with oxygen. He then exhaled and started down the long path to the main entrance of the mansion. As he neared it, two guards came into his sight, and Zoran knew if he could see them, then they could see them too. Both of the guards were armed with short swords, and a pistol at their hips.

When they saw Zoran, they both instantly drew their swords at the ready. "Halt!" one shouted, "Who goes there!" Zoran smiled and stepped into the moonlight, allowing his face to be illuminated enough for the guards to fully see him. The guards' faces showed the expression of surprise.

"M-Master Zoran? Is that you?" the head guard asked, "What are you doing back here, young Master?" It didn't surprise Zoran that the guards were addressing him formally. In fact, he practically expected it, and it sickened him that they did. By addressing him in such formality proved that they knew nothing of the acts that happened in the mansion that they guarded.

_For Vampires that are supposed to be aware of their surroundings in order to protect their Masters, they know nothing, _Zoran thought with disgust. But he hid his disgust behind a straight face. "I'm here to take up an audience with my father," he said bluntly.

The two guards exchanged looks between each other, as if not sure of what to do. The guards might not have known why Zoran and his brother really left this place, but that didn't mean that their father hadn't made up some kind of lie in order to get rid of all of the prying questions.

The head guard scratched the back of his neck nervously and said, "I believe Lord Larousse is doing some Societal work right now, so it would be best not to disturb him until he is done." Zoran narrowed his uncovered eye at the guard and said sternly, "I'm sure Father will push aside his work for a few minutes to speak to one of his sons, don't you think? It's been a while since he's seen me or my brother, so he would surely take up this opportunity to speak to one of his children."

The guards appeared uneasy, but finally, the head guard said, "Alright, very well. I will have my colleague here go and summon Lord Larousse to speak with you." The head guard pushed the heavy wooden door open, and the lesser guard ran inside, more than likely to and retrieve Zoran's father.

"Please, come inside and make yourself comfortable while you wait, young Master," the head guard said from behind. Zoran nodded and stepped into the foyer area of the mansion. The ceiling was high, and an intricate painting was done up one the ceiling, one that indicated angels ascending down from the heavens to help save people from all of the wickedness in the world.

That painting had always made Zoran sick. Where had been the angels that would ascend to save him, the ones that never came and just stood by while he faced the wrath of his father. But for the most part, since Zoran and his brother had left the mansion, nothing had changed. Perhaps there were some new pieces of furniture, but it was all pretty much just as it was when they had left.

He scanned over the room, locking his gaze on certain places that held different memories. His eyes stopped at a an arm chair, one that was upholstered in blood-red velvet. Zoran remembered hiding behind that chair, clutching his wrist his father broke as it caused him agony while the bones healed, and crying his eyes out. He had stayed there long after his wrist healed up because he was too afraid and ashamed to show himself.

Zoran growled and spat on the floor in the direction of the chair. He had been young and frightened at the time, but he no more. That was the past, and just like the seasons, he had changed. "Where is he?" a voice bellowed from the top of the grand staircase. Zoran glanced up and saw his father at the top of the stairs. For as long as he could remember, their father had had ash-colored hair, much like Loran's.

In fact, there had hardly ever been a time when Zoran looked at his brother and couldn't help but think that Loran and their father looked alike. Lord Larousse descended down several of the steps before his eyes finally locked onto Zoran at the base of them. "Ah, my guards weren't lying to me when they said that you had returned. You know, I honestly never expected to see your face in here again after you and your brother ran off," Lord Larousse said as he stepped off the last several stairs.

Now, he and Zoran stood across from each other. The air around the two instantly grew heavy. The weight of it was pressing down on Zoran's chest, making it difficult for him to breathe. But he quickly pushed past that; he couldn't let his father intimidate him when he had a mission to accomplish.

"Trust me, it wasn't in my intentions to come back here either," Zoran said harshly, "But I have some matters to take care of." The earned an amused glance from his father.

"Matters to take care of, huh? I never once pictured you as the kind to take action into your own hands. You always had Loran do everything for you and fight your battles. Speaking of which, how is Loran? I was thoroughly surprised when he left with you that day. I always thought he would stay here and take over my place in the Society. He would have made a great leader, you know. Loran had all of the potential and power for it."

Zoran felt his anger stir a bit within him, but he quickly made it die down. Of course their father would bring up his favoritism towards Loran as means to get at him. "Loran is doing fine, I assure you. But I did not come all this way to talk about my brother," Zoran stated calmly.

His father leaned against the banister of the grand staircase and asked him, "So, why did you come all this way? It isn't possible that you came here to actually stand up to me for once in your pitiful life, is it?" Zoran's lips turned up into a devious grin.

"Actually, I guess there is a little bit of that in my reason, but not really. I came here because you have something that I need." Lord Larousse appeared a bit confused by his son's statement. "I have something you need? And what might that be?" he asked. Zoran continued to grin as he walked up closer to his father and said, "Power. You have power that I need to be able to achieve my ultimate goal."

His father's face turned from confusion to anger. "I suggest you step back, Zoran," he said and drew his hand back and readied it to strike his son. Zoran only grinned and jumped out of the way before his father's hand had a chance to come in contact with him. He then sent out several streams of dark mist and had them slam into Lord Larousse's chest, knocking his father back into the jagged edges of the stairs behind him.

There was a sickening crunch, but Zoran knew that that wouldn't be enough to put an end to his father's life. Lord Larousse was already stumbling up to his feet.

"I'm not as weak as you remember, Father. I have spent all of these years that I have been hiding for the sake of honing the powers that are my birthright to their full potential. And you might even say that my powers surpass yours now. But even with the power I have, it is not enough for me to go and take the final steps of my plan. That's where you come in, Father."

Zoran paused for a moment and savored the expression of shock and fear that was plastered on his father's face. It was so satisfying that he knew that it would not be something that he would forget anytime soon. Zoran then pointed at his father and said, "I've read before that whenever a Vampire consumes the blood of another Vampire, they obtain that Vampire's powers and strength. And what better power to add onto mine than that of the great Lord Larousse?"

Zoran's father's expression was now one mixed with shock and disgust. "How dare you even suggest drinking the blood of a Vampire? Much less the blood of your own father! A Vampire consuming another Vampire's blood is one of the most ultimate taboos that exist to this day and is strictly forbidden by the Society! It's sick! And I know that I did not raise my sons as disgusting, low creatures like this!"

Zoran narrowed his uncovered eye at his father and said harshly, "No, you didn't. You raised one to succeed while you let the other rot and drown in fear. Sadly, the one that you had such high hopes for is too weak to even use his powers that are his birthright, while the one you never gave a damn about is taking action. Ironic, isn't it, Father? It's amazing how arrogance can blind somebody to the truth."

His father growled and shouted back at him, "If you think I'm going to stand by and let you do something as sick as take my blood, then you are greatly mistaken, Zoran! I knew from the moment you were born that you would be nothing but a nuisance to me!" Lord Larousse, fully recovered from Zoran's earlier attack, dove at his son. Zoran jumped out of the way just as his father lashed out at him.

"You were born weak and frail, and I knew that you would not be worth anything in the long run. I should have just let natural selection take its course and let you die, but your mother refused and nursed you to health. Foolish woman, if she knew what you were planning on doing right now, she would be wishing the same things that I am now!" Zoran didn't let these harsh words from his father break his focus.

If anything, he would let his father's rage and shock work in his favor. Lord Larousse charged at Zoran again. This time, instead of dodging out of the way, Zoran dissipated into the shadows, vanishing into this air. His father stumbled past where he had been standing and looked around frantically for his missing son.

Zoran then materialized right behind Lord Larousse. And just as his father turned around to face him, Zoran plunged his hand into his father's just, piercing his heart. Warm blood oozed onto his hand, and his senses were assaulted by the pungent scent of a Vampire's blood.

When he removed his hand, his father dropped to the ground and wheezed for air. Zoran looked at his blood-covered hand as several drops of the crimson liquid dripped off. He then licked some of the blood and tasted the coppery-flavor, which was much stronger than that of a human's.

Zoran then knelt down beside his father, who was still writhing and wheezing on the marble floor. "I better hurry up and drain you of your blood, shouldn't I? I mean, I wouldn't want it to go to waste, and seeing as I pierced your heart, you're as good as dead anyway and have no further use of it," Zoran said with a demented smile.

He was taking great satisfaction in being the cause of the fear in his father's eyes. For too many years, Zoran had been the one with the same look of fear in his own eyes. So, it was nice to have the role switched. No longer was the abuser the one doing the abusing. Now, the abuser was begging for mercy as his life flowed out of the hole in his chest.

Zoran licked his lips, and when he did, he could feel the tips of his fangs with his tongue. "I'm going to take great satisfaction in doing this," he said as he reared his head back and plunged his fangs into his father's shoulder. Lord Larousse whimpered and tried to speak, but was too weak to form any words.

As Zoran drank the blood of his father, he could feel his body accepting the strength that came with the blood of another Vampire, and being that his father was fairly powerful, his strength would be a good addition to the power that Zoran already possessed.

Soon, no more blood was able to be taken from his father's veins. So, Zoran removed his fangs and sat back. He wiped some of the excess blood from his mouth and stared down at the lifeless body of his father. He had done it. He had finally exacted the revenge that he had so longed for against his father.

But there was only a small portion of his real plan; there was still a lot more that needed to be accomplished. "Larousse!" a voice shrieked. Zoran glanced up at the staircase as his mother came running down. She then halted and stared at her son in utter horror. "Z-Zoran?…W-Why….," she clamped her hands over her mouth and continued to just stare. Zoran stood up from his father's body and turned his cold gaze onto his mother.

"You deserve the same fate that he did," he said harshly, "You stood by all those years, knowing damn good and well of all of the things he did, and didn't do a damn thing to stop him! Do you care to tell me why you didn't try to help me! I know for a fact that you weren't afraid of him, seeing as you were just as powerful as him! So, tell me!"

His mother shook her head and said in a trembling voice, "I-I…I loved both y-you and Loran. I-I didn't…..I didn't w-want to see anymore bad th-things happen to either one of-" Zoran cut her sentence short by yelling, "Shut it! Stop with your lies! Just admit that you favored my brother more like father did! Admit it! You kept me from dying out of pity! If you had really cared, you would have done something to stop that monster from hurting me!"

Zoran found himself surprised that he had tears rolling down from his good eye and that his hands were trembling. His mother cautiously took a step closer to him and said gently, "Zoran, that's not true. Just calm down. You know I loved both you and Loran equally." He shook his head and clamped his hands over his ears; he didn't want to hear it. "Lies! Lies!" he bellowed, making his voice echo off the walls of the mansion.

"Zoran, listen to-" His mother was unable to finish her sentence in time before Zoran sent out one of his ropes of darkness. It flew through the air and impaled her through the chest. She dropped on the stairs and didn't move. Zoran stood there, panting heavily from the rage that had built up within him.

He wasn't going to sit there and listen to her lies. She had been just as guilty of all of his pain as his father. His mother's blood started to run down the stairs, and a thought crossed his mind; his mother really was as powerful as his father had been.

Her blood would only add onto the power that Zoran had accumulated that night. So, he walked up the stairs and knelt beside his mother, reared back, and dug his fangs into shoulder and drained her of her blood. It didn't have as strong of a taste as his father's, but it was still stout.

When nothing remained in her veins, he stood up, nearly stumbling back from the dazed state he was in after consuming that much blood in such a short amount of time, and made his way down the stairs.

The room around him felt like it was covered in a fog, but he knew it was just the intoxicating effects of drinking too much blood. Zoran made it to the massive wooden door and pulled it open. When he did, he instantly felt a bit more alert as the cool night air nipped at his face.

The two guards at the side of the door jumped back in surprise when they saw him covered in the blood of both of his parents. They quickly raised their weapons to fight, but Zoran just sent out two tendrils of darkness, which wrapped around the guards' necks and quickly ended their lives.

He then continued to walk on down the pathway where he had left Alexander and Jessie, but stopped when a brown leaf fluttered through the air and landed at his feet. Zoran picked the leaf up and stared at it; it was the first sign of the changing seasons.

"And my actions on this night shall be the first sign of more changes to come," he said aloud with a twisted grin. He then made the dead leaf burn to a smoldering ash in his hand as dark flames rose from his palm and incinerated the brittle leaf. The ashes flew from his palm into the air, carried off by the wind to somewhere else. And with that, Zoran continued on down the path to rejoin Alexander and Jessie.

* * *

_Story title based off the song Vampire's Call by The Poodles._The shortly-awaited sequel is up now! Yay! And now that I am done with band camp, I should be able to update a little bit more frequently, but no promises, seeing as school will be starting next week. Well, I hope this first chapter is up to snuff and they you will all enjoy this story! Read and please leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	2. Missing Pieces

_~O~_

Alice figured that she had to be dreaming; she was someplace that she had never been before, and she had no idea as to how she got there. She began to take in her surroundings, and found that she was standing in the middle of some kind of forest.

Thick fog rolled through the trees, making it difficult to see anything far away. It was also eerily silent, which told Alice that she wasn't anywhere near a road or town. So, where was she, then? Alice decided that the best way to find out was to start walking in one direction and see where it took her.

She started walking through the thick fog, putting her hands in front of herself to make sure she didn't run into anything. Briars and roots caught at her feet, making her stumble every now and then. There was then the sound of somebody running through the trees; she wasn't alone.

Unsure as to whether or not she could trust this stranger that she couldn't even see, Alice ducked behind the thick trunk of a tree and pressed her back against the rough bark. But her curiosity was also eating her alive. So, she cautiously peered out from around the tree and saw the silhouette of a person through the fog. They appeared to have been resting against the trunk of a tree, from what Alice could gather.

The mystery person then stood up straight and looked off to his left. That was when Alice heard the sound of more people coming towards them. She tensed up; whoever she saw through the fog was being chased. Why, though? Was the person dangerous?

She peered back around the tree and saw just as the mystery person started to take off again. But before he could get started, another person lunged out and tackled him to the ground. Alice clamped her hand over her mouth to hold in the gasp that threatened to emerge.

Four more silhouettes appeared through the mist and helped get their tackled victim up to his feet. One of them shouted, "We got him! We got him!" Alice shook her head; she didn't understand what she was seeing. Perhaps the person that was being chased had been a fugitive of some sorts. The group of people that had been chasing him started to carry him off in the opposite direction, and Alice found herself curious as to know where they were taking him.

So, to feed her curiosity, she cautiously followed behind the figures of the silhouetted people, making sure not to cause any noise to attract their attention. As she followed behind them, Alice found that the fog was getting thinner. Although, it was still rather difficult to see very far ahead. She continued to walk behind the mystery figures until she cleared the trees.

Now, the remainder of the fog rolled on, and Alice found herself faced with a massive castle. Giant stones made up the walls of the castle and its huge towers that reached up to the sky. Gothic-style spires rose up from the tips of the castle's towers and gave it all an ominous appearance. The structure in front of her was literally like something out of a history book for the Medieval time period.

_Where am I? _she thought to herself. Was it all just some kind of world made up by her subconscious brain? Alice didn't feel like it was; she felt like what she was seeing had possible been a real place at some point in time. But she also remembered hearing that people don't dream about places they had never seen or been to before, and as far as Alice knew, she had never seen a picture or anything of this castle.

She snapped out of her thoughts when she heard the defiant shouts of the man that was being carried into the castle. She looked as he was carried in through the tall archway of the main entrance. Alice felt her curiosity mount even more. She wanted to know what was going to happen to the man, and seeing that this was all a dream anyway, she had no worries of being injured or anything.

So, she shot out from her hiding spot at the edge of the forest and ran inside of the castle. The moment she was inside, Alice ducked behind a column to hide herself, just in case somebody might have seen her intrusion. While hiding, she took in the interior of the castle and found that it wasn't exactly as she had thought it would be.

Instead of the inside being cold stone like the outside, everything was a cream-colored marble; the floors, the walls, the column she was hiding behind. Torches, which were ablaze at the ends, were nailed into the marble walls every so many feet. The flames that danced at the ends made the marble walls behind them glisten in the dim light. It was all gorgeous.

Alice finally tore her gaze from the ornate interior and returned her focus onto her task at hand, which was the find out what was about to become of the man she saw get captured back in the forest. She peered around the column just as the man was carried into a neighboring room. The moment he was inside, Alice ran to the entryway and leaned against the wall there.

She could hear talking inside of the room, along with the clattering of chains. Cautiously, she peered around the corner and into the room. There, she found that about twenty people were gathered around, but upon closer inspection, Alice saw they weren't exactly people.

Their eyes were vibrant, inhuman colors, and their teeth were pointed down into fangs. _Vampires, _she realized. Did that mean that the man that they brought back to this castle would become their next meal? Alice shuddered at the thought, even though she herself had offered up her blood several times already. But this was different; this was somebody that was having their blood taken by force.

Her eyes drifted across the room and locked onto the man that had been brought to the castle by force. His wrists were shackled, and his arms suspended just above his head by chains. The man, now that she could see him without the interference of the fog, had straight hair as orange as hers that came down to around his waist. Alice took note of the utterly defeated look of this man's face.

She then tore her gaze from the man when she heard somebody clear their throat. Alice looked around until she saw who she figured must have been in charge. The Vampire stood up from a high-back throne and strode across the room until she stopped in front of the man. Alice found herself taken aback just how stunning this female Vampire was.

She had hair that Alice could only describe as the color of honey, and it was even longer than that of the captured man's, despite that fact that it was tied up in several sets of intricate braids; Alice wouldn't have been surprised if the female Vampire's hair touched past the floor. "Arthur, I have dreamed of the day when you would be at my mercy," she said smoothly and took the man's face in one of her hands. Arthur tore his face away from her touch and spat on the floor. "Keep your filthy hands off of me, vile beast!" he hissed.

Alice flinched back at the hatred that filled the man's voice. The female Vampire narrowed her icy blue eyes and said, "Is that anyway to treat the hollowed ground of the Countess of the Society? I at least expected better manners from one of the top Hunters around. Guess that proves just how uncivilized humans still are."

Arthur chuckled humorlessly and retorted back with, "You're one to talk. You Vampires go and chase down people and drink their blood. If that isn't the most barbaric thing, then I don't know what is." Alice found herself holding her breath in anticipation, and the tips of her fingers were white from the holding on tightly to the marble wall as she waited to see what would transpire next.

"And the slaughter of an animal for the consumption of its flesh is not barbaric either? It's the same thing, Arthur. You humans kill animals because you need their flesh to survive, while us Vampires just need the blood of humans to continue to thrive. The only difference is that we are capable of not killing our food source," the female Vampire said with a sneer.

She then turned on her heels, her back facing to Arthur, and faced the rest of the Vampires in the room. She addressed them by saying, "Enough with this mindless banter. It's time we took righteous action into our hands to avenge the slaughter of so many of our brothers and sisters that has happened by the hands of that human." The rest of the Vampires in the room nodded in agreement with her. The female Vampire then turned back around to face Arthur. With a flowing grace, she walked right up to him, their faces only mere inches apart.

"And as Countess of the Society, it is my job to punish you for your crimes against my fellow kind," she said and took Arthur's shackled hand into hers. Alice just barely saw as the female Vampire dug her fingernail into the man's palm. Arthur began to struggle to try and break free from the chains that held him in place, but even Alice could see that any attempt to escape was a futile one.

The Countess then punctured her own palm, drawing her own blood. She held her hand far above her head for everyone to see the crimson liquid that oozed from her flesh. "I, Countess Lucia of the Society, hereby sacrifice my own blood to make the Vampire Hunter Arthur Gehabich suffer for his crimes for the remainder of his wicked life," Lucia bellowed with a voice of power and placed her bleeding palm onto Arthur's.

He screamed out and tried to fight back, but the chains wouldn't allow it. Alice stumbled and fell back onto the marble floor. _Gehabich? His last name is the same as mine? _Shock filled Alice. It had to be coincidence, just something her subconscious mind made up.

She looked up and watched as Arthur writhed in pain against his chains. Blood poured from the corner of his mouth, and his face was contorted into an expression of agony. "You can stop praying that the Transition kills you, Arthur," Countess Lucia said flatly, "because I know for a fact that you will survive it and be Turned. Then, you will have to live out the remainder of your life as the creature you despise the most."

Alice shook her head in disbelief. It was all a dream. It meant nothing. But then, why did it all feel so real. Countess Lucia then looked in the direction of where Alice still sat on the marble floor, and smiled a smile that sent a chill down her spine. She then shot upright in her bed, panting heavily with a racing heart that felt like it might beat itself right out of her chest.

Alice then began to look around frantically around to see where she was at, and found herself in a room with cavernous walls. _The enclave…..I'm in the enclave…_She started to calm down a bit, but she couldn't shake the realistic chill that her dream had left behind. _It all had seemed to real…..It felt like it really happened….._Alice jumped when the door to her room opened up, but relaxed when she saw Loran step through the door. He stopped a few steps past the threshold and stared at her in surprise.

"Ah, you're finally awake. That's good. I was just checking in on you to see if you had finally woken up, and what do ya know?" he said with a smile, but it slowly faded when he saw the distress she was in. "Are you alright?" Loran asked. Alice ran a hand through her hair, which was slightly damp with sweat, and told him, "Yeah, just had a nightmare…..What…..What happened to me anyway? The last thing I recall is that I had been trying to help you and…..And I think I got hurt…."

With that, Alice lifted the bottom of her shirt up and exposed her belly, and was surprised to find that there were no injuries. "I could have sworn I had been ripped open…..," she said in confusion. Loran adverted his gaze guiltily and told her, "You were, but it's a bit of a long story, one that I think Shun should tell you, rather than myself." He started to leave out of her room, but Alice stopped him.

"Loran, wait. Can't you at least tell me some of what happened, or at least how long I've been out?" she asked desperately. It was like a gap of her memory of that night had vanished, and Alice didn't like it.

Loran looked around uneasily and finally said, "You were hurt and almost died, but we did something to help save you, which you'll have to get Shun to explain to you what that was, seeing as it's kind of between you two now. But you've been unconscious for almost three days while your body was recovering. That's all I can tell you without over-stepping some kind of line. You'll have to get the rest of your explanation from Shun. I'm sorry, I really wish I could tell you more."

Loran then hurried out of the room, leaving Alice to her own thoughts. She had been out for almost three days? How much had she missed in that time that she lost? What about her friends? Surely they would have noticed her disappearance by now and would be worried sick about her.

What kind of lie would she have to tell them this time? Alice closed her eyes and sighed heavily. She would have to worry about her friends another time. Right now, she wanted to get some answers as to what happened that night when she almost died, and Shun was apparently the only one who could give her those answers.

* * *

Another chapter down! Thank you all for all the great reviews so far; they have really made my day! So, keep those great reviews coming! There might not be an upload tomorrow because I have this thing with my family that we do every year and I don't know how I will feel when I get back from it. Anywho, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Read and leave a review on the way out! ~Copperpelt~


	3. Thirst

_~O~_

Shun tilted the chalice of blood to his lips with trembling hands, but the moment the blood started to go down to his stomach, his body expelled it. He growled in frustration and set the chalice on the dresser beside him with enough force that some of the blood sloshed out.

"Dammit," he hissed under his breath. Since getting back to the enclave and discovering that Alice was now his only source of blood, via Imprint, he had been trying his best to hold down the blood from the enclave, but with little avail. Every time he consumed the blood, his body would only make it come back up, just like Sinclair had said it would; if it wasn't Alice's blood, his body would reject it.

But Shun had thought that he might have been able to train his body to hold down the blood of complete strangers that had donated their own life-giving fluid to Sinclair for money. And by now, it was more than apparent that doing this wasn't going to work.

It pained Shun to know that he would have to take Alice's blood from now on until one of them died in the end. When that happened, their Imprint would be broken, and whoever was left alive would be freed from the curse. Shun wasn't even sure how Alice would react to knowing about this.

That was why he was trying to find a way out, an alternative measure. He knew he would have to tell her eventually, but as far as he knew, she was still unconscious, and he wasn't going to try and wake her to tell her. Shun gasped as a wave of pain racked his body, nearly bringing him to his knees. His head throbbed with an ache that he knew all too well; Bloodlust.

He knew that it would be only a matter of time before the dreaded survival technique would kick in, seeing as he had nearly gone three days without consuming blood and being able to hold it down. Shun held on tightly to the dresser beside him, using it as a way to keep himself standing.

He couldn't give into his Bloodlust just yet, though. A thought then crossed his mind. If his body was so desperate for blood, then perhaps it wouldn't care whether or not it was the blood of the person he was Imprinted with. With a trembling hand, Shun reached out and grabbed the chalice of blood he had sat down on the dresser beside him. He tried to drink some, but it didn't even get to the back of his throat before he spat it back up.

The chalice then slipped out of his hand and clattered onto the floor, spilling its crimson contents onto the stony ground. Shun leaned heavily against the wooden dresser, gasping for air and clutching his throat, which had suddenly become tight as his Bloodlust further kicked in and tried to take total control. He leaned back against the wall behind him and slid down to the floor, still gasping for air that felt far away.

_~O~_

Alice left out of her room, making sure to close the door behind her on her way out. She then started down the cavernous hallways of the enclave, which twisted and turned like a maze. Even though Alice knew that Vampires lived here, she was perfectly calm.

She had been in the enclave before and had seen them first-hand, so she knew that they were different from the Vampires that had attacked her several nights ago. She had nothing to worry about. As she worked her way through the hallways without the slightly idea as to where she was going, her mind began to wander. She thought about what she might hear when she found Shun and asked him to fill in the blanks in her memory. Did she even want to know?

Of course, Alice didn't like the feeling that her missing days brought with them, so she naturally wanted to fill in those holes. But what if the truth that would fill those holes would be just too much for her to handle? What if it was some kind of terrible truth?

She shook her head and pushed those thoughts away. Positive. Alice had to stay positive. She held her head a bit higher and continued down the hallway she was on until she finally came across somebody else; it was Alucard, the Vampire that he gone with her and Shun to escort her back to Marucho's. To Alice, that day felt so long ago. They had been ambushed, and she had nearly had her throat ripped out.

That was the first time Alice saw that not all Vampires were like the ones at the enclave, that some were really monsters whose only intentions were to kill. Alucard appeared surprised to see Alice standing there in the hallway. "You're awake, huh?" he asked.

Alice nodded and said in response, "Yeah, just woke up a little while ago. Hey, you wouldn't happen by chance know where Shun is, would you? There's something I need to talk to him about." Alucard glanced over his shoulder and pointed down the hallway in the direction that Alice had originally been walking in. "You might find him in his room. It's the third from the end."

Alice nodded and thanked Alucard for his help as she walked by. She couldn't help but feel that it must be a little weird to have a human in the enclave, though; it wasn't like one being there was something happened everyday, right? Alice shrugged it off and continued down the hallway until she reached the third room from the end, which was Shun's room, according to Alucard.

Alice remembered that when she was first brought to the enclave, she had been in Shun's room. Although, she had never really paid much attention as to where it had been located. She had been unconscious at the time after being attacked by Vampires the night before.

But Shun had saved her before any harm could come to her, and for that, Alice was very grateful. It then occurred to her just how many times Shun had rescued her from some kind of danger, and just how many times he had put his own life on the line in the process. It made her feel like some kind of damsel in distress, and Alice didn't really like that. By being somebody who couldn't take care of themselves, that made her feel like dead-weight, a hindrance.

And Alice didn't want to be a burden for Shun, or anyone else for that matter. If anything, she wanted to be of some kind of help, to prove that she wasn't helpless. Perhaps if she at least learned how to defend herself, then she could hold her own and take some of the weight off other people's shoulders.

Alice made a small, mental note to suggest the idea to Shun later on and see if he could teach her some techniques that she could use to defend her own life, rather than hope that somebody comes along at the right time and saves her. Alice lifted her hand up to the door and knocked on the wooden surface with her knuckles. "Shun? Are you in there?" she asked, raising her voice a little so she could be heard inside of the room.

When she didn't get an answer, Alice knocked again and waited. Again, nothing. Curious as to whether Shun was really inside the room, or perhaps just sleeping, she pushed down on the doorknob and slowly opened the door. She peered inside of the room, but none of the torches on the walls were lit, which made it difficult to see through the pitch blackness of the room.

"Shun?" Alice asked and pushed to door open some more. As she did so, light from the hallway illuminated a section of the room that the opened door allowed in. With this additional light, albeit dim light, Alice made out the shape of Shun laying on the floor against the wall. Her eyes widened and her heart sped up. "Shun?!" she called out and darted into the room.

Alice knelt down beside him and began to look him over for any injuries. "Shun? Shun, can you hear me?" she asked frantically. Alice found no wounds on him, despite the fact that there was a bit of dried blood on his clothes and on the floor nearby. Her eyes then drifted to an empty chalice that had rolled halfway underneath the dresser beside them.

Her panic eased a bit in knowing that the blood wasn't his, but it didn't ease the fact that something was wrong with him. Beside her, Shun suddenly moved a bit and groaned. "Shun?" Alice asked. Her voice was overflowing with worry. Shun pushed himself up to a sitting position, but his bangs covered most of his face, hiding it from Alice. But his hair didn't come low enough to hide his mouth from her view, and because of that, Alice just barely made out the shape of two, razor-sharp fangs behind his lips.

"Shun?" she asked and reached her hand out to brush his hair out of his eyes so she could see the rest of his face. But before she even had the chance, Shun lifted his gaze up slightly, allowing his eyes to peer through his bangs. Alice now found herself face-to-face with the same feral-look in his eyes that she had seen only a handful of times. It was a look that made her uneasy, one that sent a slight chill down her spine.

She felt her heart rate pick up a bit as adrenaline pumped through her veins in a natural response to danger. But she didn't run like her body was telling her to. "Shun? What's-" Alice didn't have the chance to finish the rest of her question before Shun lunged at her, pinning her to the ground by her shoulders. Instinctively, Alice tried to struggle against him, but the weight he was exerting on her shoulders was too much for her to win against.

She wasn't going anywhere. Shun loomed over her, staring a hole into her neck with that animal-like gleam in his eyes. His fangs also were in plain view now, instead of just barely visible behind his lips. It was strange for Alice to see him like this, but she had to remind herself that this was what Shun was now, and that she had vowed not to be afraid.

Although, at that moment, it was a bit difficult to not feel a small sense of fear. She tried to fight against him again, but quickly realized that she was still going to be stuck there until Shun let her go. "Shun! Shun, snap out of it!" Alice said sternly, but her words just seemed to go right past him. That's when it hit her. _He's fallen into Bloodlust, _she realized.

Alice had never seen Shun in completely Bloodlust; she had only seen him as he was starting to fall into it. That had been when Alice offered up her blood to him, and he had taken it. She knew that with him being in Bloodlust now, there would be no snapping him out of it until his body got the amount of blood it needed. Alice flinched as she felt Shun's nails dig into her shoulders.

She could feel as her blood was drawn to the surface. Shun lowered his face down to the crook of Alice's neck. She could feel his ragged breathing on her skin. He then licked the blood he had drawn from her shoulder with his nails. Memories of the night when she and Shun had been ambushed by a group of Vampires returned to her mind, and Alice cringed when she remembered the touch of the Vampire that had almost ripped her throat out.

Shun then moved his face back to the crook of her neck, where he whispered in a raspy voice, "I'm sorry." Alice didn't even have time to register the words before she felt razor-sharp fangs burrow into her neck. She gasped in response, but quickly calmed down when her mind caught up with what was happening.

It was just like the first time she let Shun take her blood; the initial pain of the bite died away, leaving behind a numbness that made it tolerable. But there was something different about this time. Emotions that weren't hers flowed into her mind, things like self-loathing, fear, and regret.

Alice knew they weren't hers because she didn't have any reason to feel any of those things; not even the fear. But since the emotions weren't Alice's, then that could only mean that they were Shun's. But how was it possible for her to experience his emotions? Alice felt her confusion mounting.

While she was lost in her thoughts, Shun removed his fangs from her neck and sat back against the wall behind him. His breathing was heavy, as if he had been running for a long time. He turned his face away from Alice and wiped blood from his lips with the back of his hand.

And for a split second as he further turned away from her, Alice caught a glimpse of his eyes; they were back to their normal, amber color. No longer did they hold a feral appearance behind them. A sense of relief flooded over Alice in knowing that his Bloodlust had come to an end. She started to sit up, but quickly realized she would have to take it slow when a wave of vertigo hit her.

Alice might not have lost as much blood as she had when she first let Shun take blood from her, but she had lost enough to make herself a bit light-headed. So, Alice slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position and sat across from Shun. "You were under Bloodlust," she said to him, "So, don't beat yourself up over something that you couldn't help. I'm not mad at you or anything, Shun. I'm just a little taken aback by the suddenness of it all."

Alice remembered how much he had hated himself after he first took blood from her; it reminded him of the fact that he wasn't human anymore. She reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder. "See? I'm fine?" she told him and smiled to add in some reassurance.

She wanted to show him that she really was okay, and that it didn't trouble her that he had taken blood from her when he had no control over his actions. "Sinclair was right…..," Shun whispered under his breath, "it can only be your blood…." Alice raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Shun, what are you talking about?" she asked him. Shun turned his gaze to her, and Alice was slightly taken aback by the total seriousness that was in his pained expression and told her, "There's something you need to know."

* * *

New chapter up (obviously). I realized that there needed to be another blood-sucking scene (god, that's kinda weird to put into words), so there it is! I think it worked very well here, but that's just me. As for an upload tomorrow, there should be one unless I sleep in very, very late. Normally if I slept in late there wouldn't be a problem, but I have to go and get my class schedule tomorrow, so a bit of a busy day. I'm really excited to get my schedule though because it will have my senior classes! Yay! Last year of high school! Go me! Well, I hope you've all enjoyed this chapter! Read and leave a review on the way out! ~Copperpelt~


	4. Blood Ties

_~O~_

Alice stared at Shun, not sure what he meant. "What is it?" she asked. He had told her that she needed to know something, and by the expression on the raven-haired teen's face, he appeared to be having a difficult time finding the words he needed.

To try and help make it easier on him, Alice said, "Shun, whatever it is, I'm sure it won't be as shocking to me as when you told me you were a Vampire. So, just say it." She smiled at the end of her short pep-talk to try and further relax him. But Shun still hesitated and seemed to be hunting for the rest of his explanation.

Alice began to think that maybe he was having trouble because he had just attacked her and taken her blood; it was certainly a possibility. But it wasn't like she held anything against him, especially when she knew that he hadn't been able to help it.

_He had been in Bloodlust. He had no control, _Alice thought to herself as she brought her hand up to the spot on her neck that he been recently punctured. She looked up when she heard Shun let out a heavy sigh. He ran a hand through his jet-black hair and said, "Alright, I suppose you have a point." Alice smiled and felt a sense of relief that her words had actually reached him.

"Go on," she said in an attempt to speed the painstaking process along. Shun adverted his gaze and told her, "I'm just worried about how you'll react to hearing this….I don't want you to hate me for something that couldn't have been helped." Alice tilted her head to the side in confusion.

She didn't know what Shun was talking about. He couldn't have been referring to when he just pounced her not five minutes ago, seeing as Alice had already told him that she wasn't angry at him for the surprise attack. So, what could it have been?

"Shun, just tell me what you're talking about? What is it that I need to know?" Alice asked. She was growing a bit agitated, but she wasn't about to let Shun know that, so she kept her voice calm and steady, rather than let it reflect her true emotions. "An Imprint," Shun suddenly said as his amber eyes locked onto her. Alice blinked a couple of times, slightly taken aback by the sudden abruptness in his voice.

"An Imprint?" she asked. The previous confusion Alice felt a moment ago didn't even compare to that which she was experiencing now. "Yes," Shun said and ran his hand through his hair again, "that's what happens when a human consumes the blood of a Vampire that they have given their own blood to…It's kind of like a connection that forms between the two."

Alice still wasn't sure what Shun was trying to get at. She at least understood what he had just told her though; a human who drinks the blood of a Vampire that had already taken blood from that human, have something called an Imprint form between them. "Alright, but why is that so important for me to know? It's not like I've consumed any blood from you, or any Vampire for that matter."

After she said this, Shun adverted his gaze ever-so-slightly from Alice, and that was all she needed to see to know the truth. It all hit her at once; she had consumed some of Shun's blood, and because he had taken blood from her as well, they were now Imprinted. "But….But when did I?" she asked, her confusion only mounting further. Alice didn't ever recall drinking any of Shun's blood.

She shook her head as she tried to piece together a puzzle that was missing half of its contents. "You were about to die when I found you and Loran. He had been trying his best to save you, but he knew that you would probably die," Shun said grimly. Alice brought her hand to her stomach, to the place where she had known that she had been injured at. _So I was hurt, _she thought to herself.

When she had finally come to several hours ago, she had found her stomach intact, even though she thought that she had been hurt. "How did I survive then?" Alice asked. Her head was starting to hurt from all of what was going on; she just didn't understand everything that was happening.

Shun glanced back over at her and said, "Loran told me that there had been reports from hundreds of years ago that when humans drank the blood of Vampires, they adopted the Vampire's enhanced healing abilities and could heal or recover from sickness faster. So, I didn't hardly hesitate to give my blood to you if it meant saving your life. And it worked. That's how you survived."

Alice let this sink in; Shun had saved her life. He had given up his blood for her in an attempt to see if those ancient reports had been true. As she continued to think about this, Shun continued to speak. "Neither Loran nor myself knew about the Imprint, though. It was only till Sinclair found us and realized what had happened did we learn about it," he explained.

Alice smiled at the raven-haired teen and told him, "And you were worried about me hating you because of this? Shun, if anything, I'm grateful. You saved my life." Shun began to shake his head and told her, "That's not all of it. After Loran and I were informed about the Imprint that I had unknowingly placed on you, Sinclair began to elaborate about the consequences that follow with it."

Alice saw that hurt in Shun's eyes now; the hurt had already been there, but now, as he spoke, it seemed to be worse. "What kind of consequences?" she asked nervously. Shun kept his gaze away from Alice, refusing to look at her as he said, "Because of the Imprint, I can only drink your blood now…..Anything else will only be rejected from my body."

Alice remained silent as she allowed this new information to settle. Her blood was the only blood that Shun could have now? She wasn't sure how she should have been feeling about this. How was one supposed to act upon hearing such news? Shun turned his head and moved his gaze to the chalice and spilled blood on the floor.

"That's why I had fallen into Bloodlust. For the past couple of days while you had been unconscious, I had been trying to force my body to hold down the blood from the enclave in order to try and spare you this grief." Alice moved her gaze down to the stony floor in front of her as she began to think just how she really felt about all of this.

She didn't hate Shun; that was obvious. How could she hate him for something he hadn't known at the time, especially when he had done it to save her life? There was just no way she could hold hostile feelings towards him because of that. And because he didn't want to hurt, Shun had been starving himself by trying to drink blood that his body no longer wanted.

_He's done so much for me, _Alice thought to herself. It was true, Shun had done a lot for her. He had saved her more times than Alice cared to count, and put his own life on the line just as much. And what had she done for him in return other than offer up her blood to him one time and cause him more trouble? She snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Shun sigh.

Alice looked up at him as he told her, "I just don't want you to hate me for this. If I had known about the Imprint before I had given you my blood, maybe I would have been more on the fence about saving you….No…..No, that's not true….I probably would have done it anyway, regardless about the Imprint."

He then turned his amber gaze onto Alice for what seemed like the first time since the conversation started and told her, "I just didn't want to lose you. You were the only one I was able to turn to when all of this happened, the only one that still treated me like I was human. You became something that I needed in order to cling to the last strands of my sanity that held me together."

In the dim lights of the room, Alice could just barely make out tears in Shun's eyes. She smiled sadly, then reached out and wiped a tear from the raven-haired teen's face. He tensed up at the sudden touch, but quickly relaxed and looked at her.

Alice looked back at him with all seriousness and told him, "Shun, I don't hate you for any of this. You saved me, and so what if we have to deal with some stupid Imprint because of it? So what if you can only drink my blood? To me that's just a minor price to pay for life. I'd rather give my blood to you than die. Plus, now I at least feel like I am able to repay you for all of the times you saved me."

Alice moved from where she had been sitting across from Shun, and now sat beside him. He looked at her from the corner of his eye and asked, "You're not just saying this to make me feel better, right?" Alice smiled at him and said, "No, I mean it, Shun. Everything I just said, I meant it." This earned a small smile from the raven-haired teen, something that had used to be rare.

But now, Alice had seen more than her fair share of these rare smiles. "Good," Shun said to her, "and I meant all that I said as well. You really have become important to me, more than I ever thought any one person could be." Alice felt her cheeks warm up a bit, and her mind drifted back to when she had been with Loran several nights ago, and how the gray-haired Vampire had mentioned how he realized that Alice was important to Shun, and vice-versa.

She smiled at the memory; it was one thing for Loran to have said it, but a completely different thing to hear the words come from Shun instead. With Shun, hearing those words filled her with a sense of elation and joy, of importance. Without warning, a yawn crept on Alice.

She covered her mouth and when her yawn ended, she asked, "What time is it anyway?" Being that she had been out cold for almost three days, her sense of time was off as well; not to mention that being in the enclave wasn't making it any easier to try and figure out the time either. "About three in the morning," Shun answered. Alice just stared at him.

"Seriously?" Shun nodded and told her, "You've got to remember that Vampires are primarily nocturnal." She shook her head and said in response, "I don't know if I could deal with being awake all night and asleep all day." Shun chuckled and said, "It took me some getting used to as well, but now I hardly even think about it."

Alice shook her head and yawned again. Despite being unconscious for two and half days, she was surprisingly tired. Perhaps it was the effects of having her blood suddenly drained finally hitting her, or maybe it was just the adrenaline from their conversation wearing off, making her realize just how tired she really was.

Regardless, Alice knew it was probably best for her to resume sleeping, seeing as she had been nothing short of dead a couple of nights ago. "I think I'm going to go back to my room and go back to sleep," she said to Shun as she stood up to her feet. When she stood up, a wave of vertigo hit her, causing Alice to almost fall over. Before she had a chance to fall onto the floor, Shun caught her.

"Alice!" She brought her hand up to the side of her head, which was pounding with a headache. The vertigo died down a bit, but it was still there and making the room spin on its axis. "Are you okay?" Shun asked. His voice was brimming with worry. Alice nodded.

"Yeah," she said in a hoarse voice, "maybe I lost a little bit more blood than I thought." Shun continued to steady her, and it might have been for the best, seeing as Alice wasn't entirely sure if she could stand on her own at the moment. "I'm sorry. Here, let's sit you down and get you off your feet," he said and helped her over to the edge of his bed.

Alice sat down on the plush bed, but even while sitting, the room didn't stop its spinning. She shook her head, thinking maybe that would help her dizziness, but it didn't do anything but make her headache worse. As this went on, Alice began to feel that she wasn't experiencing effects from blood-loss. If it had been because Shun had taken too much blood from her, she would have been feeling the effects long ago.

But perhaps she hadn't paid the symptoms any mind while she had been talking with him. Alice wasn't sure what it could have been though. If it wasn't because she lost too much blood, then what would have caused her to suddenly become so dizzy?

Shun nudged her shoulder and said, "Lay down for a bit here and get some rest." Alice nodded, which made the room spin a bit more, and laid back on the plush, silk comforter on the bed. The room's spinning slowed down a bit, but not by much. She closed her eyes, no longer wishing to see the ceiling turn in circles, and instantly fell asleep.

* * *

I know! I know! It's been a while since I've updated, and I'm so sorry for being inactive for over a week without letting any of you know why. But all last week and the the week before, I had started school, and with that, I also got my senior parking spot, which we get to paint. And pretty much everyday after school I have been up there painting on my parking spot until about eight at night, so I had no time to write. But I finished the spot up yesterday and it looks amazing! :) Things should be returning to normal now, so updates will become almost daily again. Anywho, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and read and leave a review on the way out! ~Copperpelt~


	5. The Painful Truth

_~O~_

Shun glanced over at Alice and found that she had already fallen asleep before he even had the chance to ask her if she wanted anything to drink as she rested. Guilt flooded over Shun; it was his fault that she had been brought to the point of exhaustion. He had taken too much blood from her while he had been in Bloodlust.

Perhaps he shouldn't have been blaming himself that much for something he had had no control over at the time, but it still bothered to know him that he attacked Alice and took her blood against her will. She could say how she didn't mind it all she wanted to, but it wouldn't make a difference to Shun.

No matter how you looked at it, he had hurt her, and any sane person wouldn't be too thrilled about being hurt by somebody that you supposedly trusted. And because of that, Shun had to wonder if Alice was really okay with the whole Imprint thing, or if she had just been saying what he wanted to hear at the time. Was she really accepting of her fate now, a fate where she would be his primary source of blood for the rest of her life?

Shun couldn't help but think that she had just been telling him what he wanted to hear from her. He shook his head and those thoughts away before he could delve any deeper into them. Perhaps he was over-thinking the whole thing.

Maybe Alice was really okay with the Imprint, even though it would change her life as much as being Turned into a Vampire had changed his. Although, Shun still couldn't help but think otherwise, despite how hard he tried to stay optimistic about it.

Over at his bed, Alice restlessly moved around in her sleep. He decided to leave out of the room so he wouldn't disturb her rest. Shun quietly closed the heavy door behind him. With a sigh, he started down the hallway and towards the main room of the enclave.

As he made his way through the cavernous, maze-like hallways, his mind began to wonder back to the Imprint he now shared with Alice, and he realized just what kind of changes each of them would have to make to their lives. Alice would have to stay near him, being that she was his only source of blood now. But Shun knew he would also have to make changes as well.

He would have to be careful when taking blood from Alice. He wouldn't be able to take much from her whenever he had to feed, and possible wouldn't be able to get blood as frequently until he figured out a safe amount he could take from her, without causing her any harm. It would be difficult for a while until they settled down into a steady rhythm. Shun sighed; it would be a heavy task, but not an impossible one.

He finally reached the main room, and as typical for so late into the night, nearly every Vampire in the enclave was wide awake and bustling about. Ever since Alexander's defeat, the enclave had felt alive with electricity, and it could still be felt in the air, even almost four days since the fight. Shun stepped out into the main room, pushing past his fellow Clan mates in search of somebody he might know and would be able to talk with.

His eyes scanned over the crowd until they locked onto Loran on the other side of the main room. Thinking that the gray-haired Vampire would be company for a while, at least until he could get his mind off his worries, Shun made his way through the mass of Vampires until he reached his target.

Loran caught sight of Shun out of the corner of his eye. "Oh, hey, Shun," he said and turned to face the raven-haired teen. "Hey," Shun replied and stood beside Loran. The main room grew a bit louder as conversations and laughter boomed, and for any normal human, it might have been hard to hear whoever you were talking to. But Vampires were far from normal, as Shun now knew since becoming a part of this strange world.

His enhanced hearing and other senses allowed him to hear Loran over all of the chatter and yelling without a problem. "Oh, yeah, before I forget this. Did you take care of your cleansing routine this morning? I didn't check in on you, so I don't know," the gray-haired Vampire asked.

Shun nodded and told him, "Yeah, it was the first thing I did when I woke up." Loran nodded and said, "Good." What Loran had been talking about was the blood that was being used to clean Shun's system of the remnants of the blood mixture that still flowed in his blood. When Shun had first started the treatment, he had been hooked up to a bag of blood for days at a time, but the treatment had been working quick, and now, he only had to make sure that he received the treatment once a day to ensure that it got the last bits of the drug out.

In other words, Shun was almost cured from his addiction. It was relieving to know that falling victim of the blood mixture was a thing of the past now; as long as he stayed away from it. But Shun had no intention of getting involved with the drug ever again, so he had no worries about relapsing. Loran leaned back against the rocky wall behind him and said, "So, I heard that Alice finally woke up today."

Shun found himself a bit surprised that Loran knew, but when he thought about it, it didn't strike him as that big of a deal. "Yeah, she's awake. She dropped by my room a little while ago and we talked for a bit," Shun said. He left out the whole thing about him being in Bloodlust at the time and attacking her, seeing as he felt something like that deserved to remain private for the time-being.

"Where is she now?" Loran asked. Shun motioned back to the hallway he came from and told him, "She's asleep in my room. Apparently she's…..She's still a little tired from everything." Shun didn't like lying to Loran, but he didn't want to mention how he had taken enough blood from Alice to cause her to barely be able to stand on her own two feet. The gray-haired Vampire nodded.

"That's understandable," he said, "she did almost die, after all. It's probably going to take her a couple more days to fully recover. So, try not to worry too much." Shun nodded and adverted his gaze down to the floor in front of him. Loran noticed this and told him, "Hey, don't worry. She'll be fine. You just have to give her some time to regain her strength."

Shun couldn't help but think that if he had to keep taking blood from her, that she would never regain her strength. Loran continued to talk and asked, "So, did you tell her about the Imprint?" Shun nodded to answer the gray-haired Vampire's question. Loran nodded and said, "That's good. How did she handle it?" Shun thought about this for a moment; how had she taken it?

Alice had said she was okay with it, but was she really? What if she secretly hated him for causing her life to be turned upside down. But seeing that he had to give Loran an answer, he said, "She seemed to have handled it pretty well." Loran smiled warmly.

"That's great. You know, for a human, she's pretty strong-willed. She's faced things that would make most people break," the gray-haired Vampire stated. Shun nodded and couldn't help but agree.

Shun thought about how he reacted to finding out all of these things about Vampires when he was first Turned, and how he had been in denial about it for what felt like the longest time. "Yeah," he said, "she's something else, isn't she?" Loran chuckled and nodded in agreement.

_~O~_

Alice found herself in the middle of another dream. Just like the last one she had, the one where she saw the man known as Arthur Gehabich, she found herself someplace she had never been before. Yet, it felt strangely familiar. Instead of the forest that she had originally been in when she first saw Arthur being captured by Vampires, she found herself in the middle of a large moor.

Thick fog drifted lazily along near the ground, making it hard to see very far ahead. Alice walked through the fog, feeling the mist cling to her exposed skin and face. It was cold too, and she wrapped her arms around herself to try and retain some of her body's heat. On several occasions, Alice almost ran into a random tree that suddenly appeared through the fog when it was only mere inches away.

She also stumbled over the occasional rock that jutted from the ground, but never fell. She continue to wander mindlessly through the moor until she reached a section where the fog was thinner, and because of this, she could make out the shape of a hooded figure. Alice chased after the mystery figure through the fog and came to a halt when she saw him stop in front of an old, small cottage.

He knocked twice on the door of the rickety shack, and within a few seconds, the door opened and allowed the man entrance into the humble abode. Curious, Alice cautiously approached the small cottage and peered in one of the dirty windows. The glass on one of the panes was cracked, allowing her to get a clearer view, and to also be able to hear what was being said.

Inside the cottage, Alice saw two people. One, the hooded figure, was sitting at a small, wooden table. The other, an old, almost ancient-looking woman, walked to the hooded figure's side and offered him some hot tea, which he accepted. Now, the old woman sat across from the mystery man and asked in a gravely voice, "Now, what brings you into my home, Arthur?"

Alice tensed up at the name and watched as the hooded figured removed his cloaked. Sure enough, it was him; Arthur Gehabich. His orange hair had grown longer from when Alice last saw him in her dream, the one where the Countess Lucia had Turned him into a Vampire as punishment. His eyes also appeared haunted and pained. "I've heard that you have special abilities, abilities that I could desperately use," Arthur said to the old hag.

Her wrinkled face turned up in the faintest of smiles. "And what kind of abilities do you just think I have?" she asked hoarsely. Arthur kept a flat expression as he said, "I've been told that you are one of the few Vampires in this countryside that are able to seal another Vampire's powers." Alice felt her eyes widen. He was going to get rid of his Vampire powers that had been given to him as punishment?

A thought then crossed her mind; what if the same could be done for Shun? That way, he would be able to go back to having a normal life. Curious to see how this was done, Alice returned her attention to the conversation taking place in front of her to see how this was done.

The old woman cackled and said, "You're close, dear Arthur. I do have that ability, but it doesn't work how you want it to. You want to seal your powers and Vampire nature that Countess Lucia cursed you with. Sadly, I do not have the power to go up against Countess Lucia's power and seal it."

Arthur abruptly sat up from the table, knocking over a glass of tea and spilling it. "What are you talking about, you old witch!? You can't shut off this God-forsaken curse?!" he shouted. The old woman just sat there, a devious grin on her face. Calmly, she said, "Yes, that's exactly what I mean. But there is something else that I can do that might bring some ease to your mind."

Arthur's face fell, and he reluctantly sat back down at the table. "What is it?" he asked harshly. The old woman leaned forward and said, "You fear for your descendants, don't you? Your future children, as you know, will be imbued with your curse as well. You don't want this for them, do you? To have them live their lives as the monsters that you hunted?"

Arthur's face grew even more haunted when the old hag mentioned this. "No," he said breathlessly, "I don't want any of my descendents to suffer this horrible fate." The old woman smiled through her wrinkles and said, "Well, I might not be able to seal your powers, but I can ensure you that I can seal them away for your descendents. They would still have Vampire blood within them, but they would not feel the urge to feast on the blood of humans. They would be as human as you once were. Your cursed life as a Vampire would end where it began; with you." Alice saw as Arthur's eyes lit up with hope.

"They would have none of the nature of a Vampire in them?" he asked, his voice filled with awe. The old woman nodded and said, "Their powers and nature would be locked away, sealed, and would only resurface if they were to drink the blood of another Vampire."

Alice felt her eyes widen a bit, and a sick feeling formed in the pit of her stomach. She had consumed Shun's blood when he saved her, and these dreams started right after that. But this was just a dream, right? Something made up entirely by her mind. But then, why did it all feel so real, like it had all happened. Alice turned her attention back to the conversation at hand.

Arthur looked at the old hag, his expression stone-cold and serious. "Do it. Seal this curse away for my descendants. Bring me peace of mind in knowing that they won't have to suffer," he demanded. The old woman's wrinkled face turned up into a wicked smile. "As you wish," she said and pulled out a clear, crystal glass that was filled with what appeared to be water.

She then reached into a pocket on her dress and handed a knife to Arthur. "One drop of your blood in the glass," she instructed him. He nodded, took the knife, and dug the blade into his palm. Blood began to drip out and he held his hand over the glass. One single drop of crimson fell into the clear liquid, turning it the faintest red. Arthur handed the knife back to the old woman, who, in turn, drew blood from her own hand as well.

She dropped her own blood into the glass, turning it a dark red, almost the color of wine. Then, she picked up the glass and handed it to Arthur. As she did so, she said, "By Vampire blood it is done, and only by Vampire blood can it be undone."

Arthur took the glass from her and placed it to his lips. The ground beneath Alice then split open, and she found herself falling through an endless black abyss. Her eyes flew open and she shot upright in the bed. Sweat poured down her face, and her head pounded furiously.

Her hands trembled uncontrollably as she tried to wipe some of the sweat from her forehead. Her dream then returned to her mind and brought with in a chilling reality. If those dreams held any truth to them, if they had really happened and if Alice was seeing something that happened ages ago, then they could only mean one thing; she was a descendant of Arthur Gehabich. Tears began to roll down her face at the realization. She was a Vampire.

* * *

Yup, plot twist; try that on for size. Then again, I'm sure some of you might have seen that coming, seeing as some you you are really smart like that. I don't know. If you did, good job! If not, then I hoped you enjoyed this shocking chapter. Read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	6. Aftershock

_~O~_

Shun was suddenly overcome by a sense of unrest. He turned his head away from Loran, who had begun to babble on about something that had happened earlier that night, and stared down the hallway that his room was on. His mind started to drift to Alice for reasons that he couldn't explain.

Loran tapped Shun on his shoulder and asked him, "Is everything alright? You suddenly went all spaced-out in the middle of our conversation." Shun shook his head, more to shake himself out of the fog that now cloaked his mind, rather than to answer Loran's question. "I….," he started, "I'm fine. Something just…..Distracted me, is all." Loran shot him a skeptical glance, then shrugged his shoulders and resumed his story.

But Shun heard none of what the gray-haired Vampire was saying; his mind was elsewhere. The sense of uneasiness that had hit Shun without warning still clung to him and suddenly intensified, nearly causing him to cry out in surprise. "Are you sure you're alright?" Loran asked, concern filling his ash-colored eyes. Shun ran a hand through his hair and said, "Yeah, I….I just thought of something that I forgot I do for Sinclair…..I better go on ahead and get it out of the way before he finds out and gets ticked."

Loran's expression said that the gray-haired Vampire didn't fully believe him, but regardless, Loran nodded and said, "Good call. Sinclair has seemed a bit on edge since we defeated Alexander. It might be best to remain on his good side." Shun nodded and left Loran's side without uttering another word. He started down the hallway to his room, keeping his pace quicker than normal.

Shun wasn't sure how, but he had a feeling that that sense of unrest he suddenly experienced, had something to do with Alice. He knew it sounded crazy, but he just had a hunch, and he wanted to see if he was right about it. Shun finally reached his room and slowly opened the door, making sure not to cause too much noise, just in case Alice was still sleeping.

When he entered his room, he found Alice sitting upright in the bed, her orange curls hiding most of her face from sight. "Alice? Are you alright?" Shun asked, signaling his presence. He strode across the room to the bed and sat down beside her. When he did, she tensed up and moved away from him a bit. Shun was surprised by this.

"Alice?" he said softly and reached out to touch her shoulder. It was clear that something wasn't right, and Shun began to wonder if her strange behavior was somehow tied with what had transpired earlier. What if the full weight and reality of the Imprint had finally occurred to Alice, and this was how she was taking it? A pang of guilt hit Shun with this possibility; it wasn't like he had asked for any of this to happen to her.

His fingertips made contact with her shoulder, and he was surprised to find that, even through the fabric of her shirt, Alice was cold, as if the blood had run away from her body. Panic and worry started to build up within the raven-haired teen. "Alice, look at me, will you?" he asked her, trying to keep his voice calm. There was no point in making her worry as well.

Slowly, Alice turned her head and met Shun's gaze. He found that her eyes were pink and puffy from where she had been crying. The guilt he was feeling only grew worse. This had to be about the Imprint; it was the only thing that made sense to Shun. "What's wrong?" he asked, even though he already had a feeling as to what her answer would be.

Alice wiped her eyes with the heel of her palm and, much to his surprise, said, "I…..I had a bit of nightmare a second ago…..Sorry if I worried you." Shun let out a small sigh of relief and told her, "It's alright. What was your nightmare about?" With this being said, Alice's eyes suddenly obtained a haunted-look to them. Shun, realizing that whatever her dream had been about wasn't something that she wanted to relive, quickly told her, "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

Alice nodded in response, and when she didn't mention anything else about her dream, Shun figured that she had taken him up on his offer to not tell him. For some reason, this bothered him a bit. What had possibly been so terrifying about her nightmare that it drove her into silence about it?

Then again, Shun could recall many times he had had dreams where he didn't want to remember them afterwards, such as the nightmares where he had somehow harmed Alice. He shuddered at the thought of the graphic details that his brain had conjured up in his sleep all those nights ago.

"Do you care if I wash my face off in your bathroom?" Alice suddenly asked, snapping Shun out of his thoughts and back to reality. "Huh? Oh, no, I don't mind. Go ahead," he told her. Alice nodded and clambered out of the bed.

_~O~_

Alice closed the door to the bathroom behind her, and leaned against the smooth, cool wooden surface of the door, where she released a breath of air that she did not realize that she had been holding in. It was then that she also realized just how badly her hands were trembling.

She tightened her hands into fists at her sides to try and keep them from shaking so badly. Alice had had a close call back in the room; she hadn't been expecting Shun to suddenly re-enter the room so soon after waking from her dream.

So, when he had found her, she had still been allowing the weight of the truth to sink in, the truth that she wasn't exactly human like she had always thought. And then Shun had asked about what her nightmare had been about, and she had panicked. What would she have told him?

That in that dream she realized that she was a Vampire? _I don't even know how Shun would even have reacted to that…..He'd probably just tell me that it was all a nightmare and not believe me…I don't even think I'd believe me either if I hadn't seen the dream….., _she thought grimly. Alice let out another long, shaky sigh and made her way over to the sink.

The countertops in the bathroom were a light, cream-colored marble with flakes of gold in the stone as an accent. The floors were smooth tile of neutral grays and browns. In other words, it was surprising to Alice to find such a luxurious bathroom in the domain of Vampires. She reached out and grabbed the sink's faucet, turning the water on. It came out in a rush, and she cupped some in her hands.

When her small hands couldn't hold anymore, she splashed the cool water on her face, instantly revitalizing herself. Alice did this several more times. When she was done, she grabbed a white linen towel off a hook in the wall and dried her face off, along with the ends of her hair that got wet in the process. Alice then looked up at her reflection in the mirror. Her eyes were pinkish, and slightly puffy from when she had been crying earlier.

Other than that, she looked exactly the same. She didn't know what she expected to be different. Maybe she thought her hair would be a bit longer, or her eyes would look different now that she knew she wasn't human, that she was a Vampire. But even her skin appeared to have its typical pale color.

There was nothing noticeably different about her; she still looked like Alice. Alice reached out and placed her hand on her reflection in the mirror, meeting her doppelganger's outstretched fingers as well. _I might not look it, but I am different now, _she thought to herself as she pulled her hand back away from the mirror.

Where her fingers had been, they left several smudges on the silver-backed glass, leaving behind imperfections on that which had been perfect. Alice was just about to leave out of the bathroom when she was hit by a wave of vertigo. The sudden dizziness was enough to cause her to lose her balance, and if it hadn't been for the marble countertop beside her, she might have fallen to the floor.

Alice held onto the cool, stone surface and used it to hold herself up. "Now what?" she hissed under her breath. Was it not bad enough that her life had been turned upside down in less than three days, but she had to be plagued by random bouts of vertigo as well?

Alice remained standing there beside the sink for a moment until her dizzy-spell passed. When it finally did, she cautiously exited the bathroom and found that Shun was still in the room, which didn't surprise her; he was concerned about her, after all. He looked up at her as she entered back into the room. "Feeling better now?" he asked. Alice forced herself to put on a smile to help quiet some of his worry.

"Yeah, a lot better," she said, even though it was a blatant lie. When would she ever feel better? At the time, it felt as if she'd never regain a hold of her life now that she knew she wasn't normal, that her whole life had been a lie. "Good," Shun replied, "You had me worried there for a moment." Alice felt her cheeks flush a bit at his words; she liked knowing that he worried about her, even though she wasn't too fond of causing others grief.

But for some reason, having Shun worry about her was different than having somebody else do the same. Shun took a step closer to her, and the expression of relief he had slowly vanished and turned into confusion.

He narrowed his eyes at her for a moment, then shook his head. Alice raised an eyebrow and said, "What?" Shun, with a softer, less scrutinizing expression, looked at her and said, "It's nothing. Something just seemed….different about you for a moment, but it must have just been my mind playing tricks on me."

Alice felt her heartbeat pick up a bit. Had he somehow been able to tell that she wasn't human anymore? What had he seen that she had missed while looking in the mirror? Nervous, Alice bit down on her lower lip and began fretting over all of the possibilities. Only Shun's voice snapped her back to reality.

"I'm going back to the main room, seeing as I left Loran hanging in the middle of a conversation in order to come back here and check in on you. You should really continue to rest and-" Alice cut him off mid-sentence before she even realized that she had done it. "No, I'm fine," she interjected.

Shun stared at her in surprise. Alice nervously scratched the back of her neck and said, "What I mean is, I really don't want to go back to sleep…..I feel that I've had plenty of rest the past three days." What she really meant was that she was afraid to go back asleep and have another dream and discover something else about her past that she didn't want to know.

Shun nodded, but he seemed to be able to tell that her reluctance to go back to sleep was due to the nightmare she mentioned to him earlier. "That's understandable," he said calmly. Alice nodded and asked, "Do you care if I go with you to the main room to see Loran too?"

Shun smiled and told her, "Not at all. In fact, I'm sure Loran wouldn't mind seeing that you're up and about. You know, he was rather worried about you too." This didn't surprise Alice; it seemed like it was in Loran's character to be worried about anybody that was hurt.

But she pretended to be flattered by this little piece of information. "That's sweet," she said. Shun started towards the door and told her, "Well, if you're sure about walking around for a bit, then I guess we better head towards the main room before the night's over."

* * *

Bleh, sorry for not uploading the past two days. Monday I had a friend unexpectedly stay over late at my house and he didn't leave until like, 6. At that point I didn't feel like writing. And yesterday I had a band thing to do afterschool, so I had no time to write that day either. Tomorrow I should be able to upload again though, so it's all good. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	7. Coup D'etat

_~O~_

Zoran stood at a distance from a large, ornate castle, one that was even more elaborate than the castle that he had grown up in. Carved statues of gargoyles and angels lined the stone walls, creating beautiful, yet menacing works of art. Zoran's one good eye scanned the statues and stopped on a creature that was depicted with bat-like wings and razor-sharp teeth; a Vampire.

He found it rather ironic that the lair of the most revered Vampires in the world would have such a stereotypical image carved into the stone. _Then again, the Society took this structure from the humans hundreds of years ago, _he silently added to himself. As Zoran continued to stare, Alexander and Jessie stood by his side, taking in the massive site before them. Jessie let out a high-pitched whistle and said, "So, this is the Society's Stronghold, huh? It's a lot bigger than I imagined."

Alexander nodded in agreement with her. Zoran broke his gaze from the statues and took a couple steps forward. "It's a fitting place for the monsters inside, don't you think?" he asked, more to himself than to his faithful followers. Neither Alexander, nor Jessie answered his rhetorical question. Up ahead, at the gate of the castle, Zoran could make out the faint shapes of several guards patrolling the perimeter; he wasn't surprised.

Of course the Society's Stronghold would be more heavily guarded than his parents' home, but it made little difference to Zoran. He knew that he was more than capable of getting inside the Stronghold with the help of his two companions, and also with the assistance of the blood he had stolen from his mother and father. With their powers coursing through his veins, he had obtained strength that normally only the Pureblooded Nobles possessed through birthright, and that would be more than plenty for what he planned on doing that night.

Zoran's skin prickled with anticipation when he thought about the night's task. "Alright, it won't be easy to get inside, but let's try this without using force, if at all possible. We don't want to gather too much unneeded attention," he said back to his companions. Alexander and Jessie nodded their heads. Collecting his thoughts and focusing on the task at hand, Zoran started down the hill towards the Stronghold. When they got within twenty yards of the perimeter, a guard spotted them.

"Halt! State your business!" the guard shouted. Zoran grinned and took a step closer to the guards. This, in turn, caused them to react and draw their weapons; one held a short sword, while the other possessed a revolver. "Don't come any closer!" the guard with the gun snapped. Zoran held up his hands to show that he had no weapons on him, and said, "Is that anyway to treat somebody who has come to seek refuge within the Society's Stronghold?"

Both guards' faces showed expressions of surprise, but also skepticism; they didn't believe him. "And from what are you seeking refuge from?" the sword-wielding guard asked. Zoran, still keeping his hands raised, took yet another step closer to the guards. "Does it really matter what I am seeking refuge from? Tell me, when has the Society become so strict about helping their fellow Vampire brethren?" he asked callously.

The guards tensed and kept their weapons at the ready. "We have to be cautious, seeing as a Lord and Lady were slaughtered a couple days ago. This is the only reason we are showing any hesitance about letting you enter the Stronghold," muttered the guard with the gun. Zoran's lips curved up into a wicked grin. _So, news of my mother and father's murder has reached the Society, has it? I didn't expect them to hear about it so soon. _

He inclined his head and said, "It was a real shame in what happened to Lord Larousse and Lady Zaria, wasn't it? Heaven forbid something like that were to happen again." The guard, the one with the revolver, lifted the gun and pointed the barrel directly at Zoran. "How did you know about their deaths?! The Society has released no information about it yet!" He drew the hammer back, arming the gun, and kept it aimed for Zoran's chest.

All Zoran did was chuckle darkly, earning confused looks from the guards. Within his blood, he could feel his dark powers churning, itching and begging to be released. _All in due time, _he thought to himself and met the gaze of the guards. "You could say I was there when my mother and father were killed. That's how I know about their deaths. Now, you can either allow me and my companions entry, or I can let you see just how they died," Zoran said and smiled devilishly at the guards.

They both took a step back, but never once let their hold on their weapons falter. "You're not getting into the Stronghold!" shouted the guard with the sword. His cohort nodded, but didn't seem as confident. Zoran's smile fell into a fine line; but of course the guards of the Stronghold would fight back, rather than back down. That was what they were trained to do.

The Vampires of the Society that were trained to fight never back down from a battle, even if it meant their impending doom. "Very well, then. I was hoping to not have to use force, but you've left me little choice," Zoran said disapprovingly. Before the guards could react, much less charge at them with their weapons, Zoran flexed the muscles in his hands, sending forth the beams of darkness that were at his command.

They lashed out, striking and cutting deep into the flesh of the guards, then encasing them in a dark mist that slowly drained the life from them. Screams rose from the black mist, then slowly died away, leaving the night in silence. Then, the darkness began to disperse, revealing the lifeless bodies of the two guards. Zoran shook his head and said, "Tsk, tsk. What a shame. Well, they were asked for it when they stood their ground to fight."

He then turned back around to look at his companions. Alexander had a rather thrilled expression on his face, which provided proof that the blonde-haired Vampire was morbid. Jessie, on the other hand, seemed a bit uneasy, but focused nonetheless. "Are we ready to go inside?" Zoran asked calmly. The two nodded their heads, and Zoran grinned. "Alright, then. Let's give the Society a wake-up call."

_~O~_

Papers were flung from Count Gillfrey's desk and scattered on the floor. He sighed in aggravation and ran a hand through his pixie-short white hair. "Damn it all!" he shouted and stood abruptly from his chair, causing it to slide back several feet.

Gillfrey then began to pace around the grand room that was his office. The room, with its high-ceiling, was dimly lit with the warm glow of torches spaced out on the stone walls. The light that these torches cast illuminated the paintings of previous Counts and Countesses throughout the Society's history; Gillfrey's being the most recent one. He lifted his purple eyes up and looked at the portrait of himself that was done several years ago.

Unlike the other leaders of the Society before him, he didn't hold a menacing aura, at least, not in his opinion. To Gillfrey, he seemed to radiate a more calm one, but still looked the part of a powerful Count. His gaze trailed down the other paintings to his previous predecessors, only stopping momentarily to take in the beauty of Countess Lucia, the one who had captured the greatest Vampire Hunter of the time.

He then sighed heavily and walked back towards his desk, picking up the papers he had thrown done in his bit of rage. When he sat back down, Gillfrey looked back over the papers, reading the report for what felt like the millionth time that night. The contents of the papers pertained to the murder of Lord Larousse and Lady Zaria, who had been found in their home, completely drained of blood.

It had been the first report of a Vampire draining the blood of another of its own kind in the past two hundred years, and had stirred up a lot of talk within the Society in the process. Gillfrey shook his head, remembering the headache he had gotten after finally convincing the other members of the Society to keep the information secret until said otherwise; there was no need to cause panic among the Vampire community.

Gillfrey leaned back in his chair and sighed heavily. "What am I going to do? All of the reports keep saying that there are no leads as to who did this," he grumbled to himself. There had been no witnesses to the murder of Larousse and his wife, and hardly any evidence left behind to give a hint as to who may have committed the crime. And by the way the investigation was progressing, it appeared that whoever had killed the two Vampires would end up getting away with it.

Gillfrey turned his head to his right and said, "Any suggestions as to what I need to do next, Carson?" From the shadows of the corner of the room, stepped out a young Vampire. His hair appeared to be black, but when it was touched by any form of light, one could see that it was actually a deep violet. Despite his dark hair, the same could not be said for Carson's eyes, which were a brilliant blue with slitted pupils like that of a cat's eye.

Pointed tips that were his ears poked ever-so slightly out from underneath the dark purple hair. Carson, in response to Gillfrey's question, shook his head. "I'm sorry, my Lord," he said formally with a bow. Carson was the only Vampire in the world that was entrusted with protecting Count Gillfrey. Much like a bodyguard, it was Carson's job to make sure that no harm ever came to the Count, even if that meant putting his own life on the line.

At a glance, Carson didn't appear to be capable of keeping the most important Vampire in the world safe, but looks could be deceiving. What any attacker may or may not know, was that he was an extremely skilled fighter, as is the only kind that is allowed to be the one to protect a Count or Countess's life. Gillfrey closed his eyes and sighed. "Perhaps I should just take the rest of the night off and continue this tomorrow," he muttered.

Carson remained silent; he only spoke when directly addressed to. Other than that, the young Vampire stayed quiet at all times. Gillfrey, deciding to take up on his own advice, straightened the papers in front of him and stood up from behind his desk. "I think that's just what-" He was cut off mid-sentence by a loud explosion that reverberated throughout the castle walls. "What the?!" he shouted.

Carson was already by the Count's side, ready to fight and defend the leader of Vampires. Screams suddenly echoed throughout the stone walls of the Stronghold. Gillfrey's heartbeat quickened as adrenaline filled his veins; they were under attack. By the sounds of the wails of agony, his people were suffering as well. He would no allow it. Gillfrey ran around Carson, who quickly chased after him.

Even though Carson said noting, the Count knew that his guard wanted him to come back and steer clear of whatever was going on. But Gillfrey didn't stop. He was the most powerful Vampire in the world, and he was going to defend that title by defending the Society's Stronghold. He continued to run towards the sounds of agony until he reached the Grand Hall, a place where meetings and social gatherings of elite Vampires were normally held.

But rather than the grandness it was known for, blood and bodies covered the floor. Many of the corpses were mangled, torn to shreds by something that resembled claws. "Well, well, it's about time you joined the party, Count Gillfrey," a voice said. Gillfrey turned to find a black-haired Vampire sitting in the throne that the Count normally took during gatherings.

Not only this, but two other Vampires flanked the sides of the chair; all of them were covered in the blood of the slaughtered. Gillfrey tensed up and wrinkled his nose when the smell of Vampire blood finally hit his senses and made his stomach churn. He covered his face with his hand in an attempt to shield himself from the putrid stench. From behind, Carson finally caught up.

Gillfrey turned around and said, "Get out of here while you still have a chance! I can handle these creeps!" But Carson shook his head defiantly, which didn't surprise him, seeing as the young Vampire had sworn an oath to protect the Count years ago. Gillfrey sighed, knowing that Carson wasn't going to leave. So, the Count turned his attention back to the intruders.

He looked more closely at the one who was sitting in the throne, and instantly recognized him. "You're Zoran," he said in surprise, "one of Lord Larousse and Lady Zaria's sons. Zoran inclined his head a bit and grinned. "How very observant of you, Count Gillfrey." Gillfrey narrowed his eyes at Zoran, then began to look around at the carnage around him. He put two-and-two together and said, "You were the one who killed Larousse and Zaria, weren't you?" Zoran chuckled darkly and clapped his hands slow and sarcastically.

"Not only are you observant, but you also appear to be rather bright as well. But to answer your question, yes. I was the one who put an end to my parents' hideous lives in order to gain enough strength to do this." He motioned out to the blood and bodies on the floor. Gillfrey tensed up and scowled in disgust. Not only had Zoran killed his own family, but he had also taken blood from them as well, which was not only illegal, but also taboo in the eyes of modern-day Vampires.

"And why did you want to do this? You have to have a reason for killing so many, right? You couldn't have just woken up one day and decided to commit such heinous crimes." Gillfrey was trying to remain calm, despite the fact that his heart was racing and his blood pounding in his ears. Not to mention the sweat that coated his palms. Even though he was powerful, Gillfrey had never experienced something like this, so he didn't know exactly how to handle it.

Zoran stood up from the throne and said with a smile, "It's all a part of a greater plan, you see, one that I do not have the time, or the desire, to tell you." Gillfrey growled and felt his anger rising to the surface; not only had almost all of the members of the Society been slaughtered, he didn't know the reason for their blood to be spilt in the first place. "Very well," he said menacingly, "have it your way."

Gillfrey began to call forth his powers that had been passed down by birthright, but before he had a chance to strike, Zoran attacked first. Dark tendrils flew through the air towards Gillfrey, knocking him back onto the blood-soaked marble floor. He gasped as the whips of darkness came down on him, beating on his chest, arms, and legs until he could feel bones cracking.

They then withdrew back towards Zoran, almost like obedient dogs, and hovered around the homicidal Vampire. Carson hurried to the Count's side and helped him to his feet. Gillfrey could see the pleading-look in Carson's eyes, a look that was begging the Count to get out while there was still a chance. It was obvious that Zoran was strong, but was he as strong as the Count, was the real question.

Gillfrey shook his head and told Carson, "I have this under control." Zoran barked in laughter. "Is that what you call this? Under control? Ha! And who said that the Counts and Countesses had no sense of humor?" The smile on Zoran's face then vanished, settling into a fine line. "I've grown bored of this. Enough playing around. It's time to finish this," Zoran said and sent the whips of darkness back towards Gillfrey.

The Count was just about to dodge out of the way when he felt something wrap around his ankles. When he looked down, he saw that some of the dark tendrils had snaked their way around his feet, holding him firmly in place. He struggled against their hold, then looked up to see Zoran's attack heading towards him. Gillfrey had no time to counter, and he knew he was about to take the full-force of Zoran's power.

But right before the whips of darkness made contact, Carson put himself in front of Gillfrey, taking the attack in the Count's place. He screamed out and dropped to the ground, still and motionless. "Carson!" Panic rose up within Gillfrey. Zoran shook his head and said, "Darn, I didn't mean to hit him. Oh, well." Gillfrey could see the intruding Vampire readying himself for another attack.

He looked back at forth from Carson to Zoran as he quickly debated on his next move. It was clear that Carson was still alive, but for how much longer, Gillfrey didn't know. And if the Count didn't leave now, then they would both end up dead. Gillfrey closed his eyes and focused his powers on the tendrils of darkness that held him captive. Ice began to form on the snake-like rope of darkness and shattered them, freeing the Count.

Then, before Zoran's next attack could strike them, Gillfrey knelt down and took hold of Carson's wrist. And in his mind, he thought of the first place that could promise them safety and refuge, and used his powers to teleport them there in the blink of an eye, leaving behind an empty space that took Zoran's attack in their stead.

* * *

Thank heavens it is Friday; i thought I was about to lose my mind if the week didn't come to an end. So much band and senior stuff going on. Beh, I can't deal. Anywho, i'm going to cut this short and sweet; I hope you enjoyed the chapter and read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	8. Uninvited Guests

_~O~_

Alice followed behind Shun as they entered the main room and made their way towards Loran, who was leaned against the rocky wall. The gray-haired Vampire saw them heading towards him, and his face lit up with a smile. "Good to see you up and about," Loran said to her. Alice smiled nervously and nodded her head, but didn't say anything.

Shun and Loran resumed talking, and Alice caught little bits of their conversation. The gray-haired Vampire was asking Shun if he had completed Sinclair's request, which confused Alice, seeing as the raven-haired teen had done no such thing; she quickly realized that that must have been his cover-story for going to check in on her. As the two talked, Alice allowed her eyes to wander across the main room of he enclave, which was filled to the brim with Vampires talking to one another.

She suddenly felt uncomfortable. What if they somehow picked up that she wasn't human anymore? Would they call her out on it? She shuddered at the thought of Shun finding out and what his reaction would be. Even though she had accepted him being a Vampire, didn't mean that he would accept her being one too, seeing as she had always been human.

_Until recently, _she thought grimly. Alice still wasn't sure how she should act now that she knew her dark secret that had been hidden for so many years. Did she have to act differently to blend in with others of her kind? It was all just too confusing for her. "Alice, you're awfully quiet." Alice turned to find Loran's gray, concerned eyes were looking at her. She smiled and waved her hand dismissively.

"Really? I'm sorry, I didn't notice. I was just thinking about some things," she told him in hopes to direct his worry elsewhere. The last thing Alice wanted was Loran to look more closely at her, to notice some change in her that she wasn't able to see with her own eyes. She realized that it might be best to change the subject, to get it on something other than herself. So, in order to do this, she quickly said, "Where's Sinclair? I haven't seen him here in this room."

A reply came, but it was from neither Loran or Shun. "He's in his study," the voice said, and Alice turned around to see Alucard standing there behind her. "Oh," was all she had been able to say. Alucard shifted his purple gaze over to Shun and Loran and added, "He's been under a lot of stress since our fight with Alexander." Alice could see the worry in Alucard's eyes as he said this, and she couldn't help but feel there was more than stress going on in Sinclair's life right then, something that he hadn't told the rest of his Clan.

For some reason, this troubled her. What kind of leader kept secrets from his followers? Then again, she had no room to talk, seeing as she was keeping secrets of her own from people that were important to her. Alucard turned his stoic gaze back onto her and said, "You seemed to have recovered plenty from how you were when we first brought you back here. That's good."

Despite him saying that her recovery was good, Alice couldn't help but pick up on the slight hostility in his voice. And if Shun or Loran picked up on it as well, they chose not to show it. What reason did Alucard have to harbor hostile feelings towards her? Did _he _somehow know her secret? Paranoia crept up on Alice. _No, I have to stop thinking that everyone somehow knows. If I keep thinking like that, then they're bound to find out something is up, _she told herself sternly.

If she kept acting strangely, then it would only be a matter of time before Shun or somebody else made mention of it to her. And when they did, then what would she tell them? It wasn't like she was the best at lying, especially to people that were close to her. Alice ran a hand through her thick, orange hair; all of her thinking was giving herself a headache.

While she had been lost in her thoughts, Shun, Loran, and Alucard had moved on to a conversation of their own, but Alice paid little mind to it. She was about to return to her own thoughts and try to continue to sort through her problems, when she heard what only could be described as the swooping of wings from a large bird. Suddenly, the main room grew quiet, and the Vampires that had been gathered around in the middle of the room slowly began to back away, leaving a clearing behind.

Alice couldn't see through all of the bodies in front of her, so she had no idea as to what was going on; Loran, Shun, and Alucard were at the same disadvantage as she was. But their curiosity must have been strong, for the three of them ran and pushed their way to the front to see what had caused all of the commotion. Alice followed closely behind. When she finally broke through the crowd, she saw what had gathered everyone's attention so suddenly.

In the middle of the clearing, knelt a man with short, snow-white hair. In front of him was an unconscious boy, who she thought appeared to be about Shun's age. Alice instantly noticed the blood that was seeping out from underneath the body of the unconscious; he was injured.

Faces across the room stared at the two unexpected guests in surprise. Alucard shook his head and turned towards Shun and Loran. "Loran, go and help the one that's injured while I get Sinclair," he said in a hushed voice before running off and vanishing in the crowd. Loran didn't hesitate to hurry over to the center of the room where the two mystery guests were.

When he reached them, he slowly knelt down and said to the man with white hair, "Don't worry, I'm going to try and help him." The white-haired man nodded and watched as Loran rolled his companion over, revealing the painful wound on his back. Alice cringed at the sight and had to look away.

She then felt the gentle, supporting touch of a hand on her forearm, and glanced over to find that it was Shun. "You okay?" he asked in a hushed voice. Alice nodded and told him, "Yeah, his injury is just too much to look at." Shun nodded in understanding. The main room was silent for the most part, minus the low chatter that would occasionally rise up. Alice didn't like it.

She felt that her breathing was too loud, or that her nervous heartbeat could be heard through the heavy silence. Only when Loran muttered something did the quiet atmosphere break. At least, that was before Sinclair's voice suddenly boomed across the main room. "What the hell is going on in here!" he bellowed and pushed through the crowd. Vampires parted and got out of his way.

Alice couldn't help but notice the dark circles around Sinclair's eyes; he looked exhausted. He finally got through the crowd, and his gaze fell onto the white-haired man. The fatigue behind Sinclair's eyes suddenly vanished and was replaced by what Alice could only describe as total shock. "Gillfrey?" he said with uncertainty. The white-haired man, apparently known as Gillfrey, stood up.

Alice was surprised by how tall the man was; he was only slightly shorter than Sinclair. But his appearance was enough to even talk Alice's breath away for a short moment. Never before had she seen somebody so attractive that had caused her to be uneasy and nervous. It was clear that what Gillfrey had was that of eternal beauty, beauty that could only belong to something that wasn't human; a Vampire.

Gillfrey stepped around Loran, who was still working diligently to save the young man that still laid unconscious on the floor. "Sinclair, it's been a while, hasn't it?" the white-haired Vampire said flatly. Alice could see that he was obviously uncomfortable in the enclave, for whatever reason. Sinclair replied with, "That it has. It's been what, a couple decades since we last spoke?"

Gillfrey nodded once. The air between the two had suddenly grown tense, and several times Alice found herself holding her breath. The two Vampires in the center of the room seemed to radiate power. Out of the corner of her eye, Alice saw Alucard take several steps forward, ready to defend the Vampire Lord if need be. Sinclair must have seen this as well, for he raised his hand and stopped Alucard from coming any closer.

"It's quite alright. I have this under control," the Vampire Lord said calmly without breaking his gaze from Gillfrey. Alucard reluctantly took a step back, but Alice could see that the second-in-command's hand remained at the ready to draw the flintlock pistol on his hip, just in case. Sinclair inclined his head ever-so slightly and asked, "How did you know where I was? I've been under the Society's radar for years, so do you mind telling me how the Count himself has found my enclave?"

Gillfrey's mouth turned up in a smile. "You're sometimes sloppy with covering your tracks, Sinclair. The moment the Society had a hunch as to where you were, they sent in spies to keep an eye on you and record your movements. You may have think you've been under our radar for a while, but you're sadly mistaken," Gillfrey said smugly.

Despite the fact that many of the Vampires in the room now appeared uneasy, looking from Clan mate to Clan mate, pondering whether or not somebody was a spy, Sinclair remained calm and composed. "If you and the Society have known about me and my activities all this time, then why haven't you made a move to stop me?" he asked.

Gillfrey's smile faded, and he remained silent. Now, it was Sinclair's turn to grin smugly. "Don't tell me the Society is afraid of me and my Clan," the Vampire Lord teased. Gillfrey narrowed his lavender-colored eyes at Sinclair and said, "You haven't changed a bit, have you?" Sinclair's smile never wavered. He folded his arms over his chest and said, "I could say the same for you, Gillfrey."

A silence hung in the electric air between them for a moment, and yet again, Alice found herself holding her breath. She didn't have the slightest clue as to what was going on, and by the looks of things, neither did anyone else in the room; it was clear that there was an unspoken past between the two Vampires that stood in the center of the room, a past that nobody else knew about.

Not even Alucard. Before anyone could react, Gillfrey lifted his hand up, and spears of ice formed in the air around him and went flying through the air at Sinclair. But right before they would have impaled the Vampire Lord, they shattered into a fine, icy mist, sparkling in the faint glow of the torches that hung on the wall. It took Alice a moment to figure out what had happened; Sinclair had used telekinetic powers, much like the kind that she had seen Shun use on several occasions.

"Looks like your time in the Society has made you forget some things, like the fact that it's pointless to attack me directly like that. Even you should remember that," Sinclair said flatly and threw his own hand out. As if an invisible force struck Gillfrey, the white-haired Vampire was knocked backwards a good ten feet, but never once fell to the ground.

The two Vampires stood there for a moment, never taking their gazes off one another, then ran at each other. As they locked themselves in combat, Sinclair dodged everyone of Gillfrey's attacks with immaculate grace. Then, in one swift, fluent motion, the Vampire Lord grabbed onto Gillfrey's wrist and threw the Count to the ground. Gillfrey struggled to get up, but it was as if an invisible weight had been placed on his body, keeping him pinned to the ground.

Around the room, Alice could hear the faint whispers of the Vampires around her. She heard one say, "That was _the _Count Gillfrey! He's supposed to be the strongest Vampire alive!" Another muttered something like, "Sinclair defeated him without so much as even breaking a sweat!" And somebody else said, "What in the world is going on?" Alice could see the massive amounts of confusion on the faces of the Vampires in the room.

They hadn't the slightest idea as to what they had just witnessed; even Alice wasn't sure as to what had happened either. Sinclair slowly approached the immobile Gillfrey and asked calmly, "Now, do you mind telling me why you decided to show your face here?"

Gillfrey narrowed his eyes, then closed them and sighed heavily. "This wasn't exactly the place I would have liked to have gone to, but it was the only one that came to my mind the would offer me help," he explained. Sinclair appeared surprised by this statement.

He asked, "And why would the great Count Gillfrey need the help of me and my Clan?" Relief flooded into Gillfrey's eyes, and he stood up from the floor; Sinclair had released the telekinetic weight that held down the Count. Now, Gillfrey stood face-to-face to Sinclair and said, "I came here for help because the Society has fallen."

* * *

Yay! It is the weekend! I desperately needed a break from school and all of the drama that comes along with it. But I am so excited for Tuesday to roll around because it's my birthday and I get to take my driving test to get my license! EEK! Yay! I can't wait! So, in the meantime, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and read and leave a review on the way out! ~Copperpelt~


	9. Dark Secrets Come Into The Light

_~O~_

Whispers rose from the Vampires that were gathered in the main room, and Sinclair caught only bits and pieces of what some of them were saying. Overall, their main reaction to the news that Gillfrey had just dropped was nothing short of confusion, and Sinclair was feeling the same thing as well. How could the Society, the strongest and most influential Vampires in the world, have fallen?

As if sensing the Vampire Lord's confusion, Gillfrey said, "I speak the truth, Sinclair. Do you, of all people, really think I would have turned tail and run to you if it were something pointless?" The Vampire Lord scanned his eyes across the members of his Clan, taking in the lost and worried expressions on their faces. Even though most of them did not agree with the way the Society ran things, it was obvious that they were shaken up by hearing such news that the Vampirian government had collapsed.

Sinclair turned his gaze back to Gillfrey and said, "Perhaps it would be best if you elaborated this situation for me in my study. That way I can have all of the details before addressing the rest of my Clan." Gillfrey nodded in agreement and said, "Only on the grounds that you will have witnesses present to when I tell you, just to make sure that you don't alter the information in your benefit somehow."

He leaned in and added in a whisper, "I know how much you dislike the Society, so I don't want to risk you turning around and using its downfall for your gain. I'm sure you understand that, right, Sinclair?" The Vampire Lord narrowed his eyes at the Count, but nodded in agreement nonetheless. Sinclair glanced over his shoulder at where Alucard, Shun, and the human girl stood, and figured they would suffice. He motioned to the three of them and said, "To my study, now."

They all glanced at one another uncertainly before finally cutting through the crowd and vanishing. Sinclair then looked over at Loran, who had gotten the bleeding on Gillfrey's injured companion to stop. "Loran," he said to get the gray-haired Vampire's attention, "I'd like you present as well, if possible."

Loran glanced down at his patient and gave a thoughtful look before finally saying, "I think he's stable enough right now for me to leave his side for a moment or two. Once I get him situated in a room, I'll head straight to your study." Sinclair nodded and watched as Loran rounded up the help of several other Clan members in order to carry the injured guest out.

The Vampire Lord turned to Gillfrey and asked, "Shall we get a move on?" The white-haired Vampire nodded and said, "Lead the way. This is your domain, after all, and I am simply a guest." Sinclair rolled his eyes. _And what kind of formality is starting a fight with your host? _he thought sarcastically, but knew better. In fact, Sinclair expected as much from Gillfrey.

The Vampire Lord cut through the crowd before him, which parted like the Red Sea as he walked through. Gillfrey remained close behind. They walked through the cavernous halls of the enclave until they reached the large wooden door to the study. Sinclair pushed the door open and saw Alucard, Shun, and the girl sitting around waiting patiently. Sinclair strode across the room over to the small table where he always kept his crystal bottle of blood. He poured himself a glass and turned around to face his guests.

"Does anybody care for some? Gillfrey?" he asked and lifted his glass as a gesture. Gillfrey shook his head, generously declining the Vampire Lord's offer. Sinclair shrugged his shoulders and took a sip of the blood. Almost instantly the blood began to calm his nerves, making this whole ordeal a bit more tolerable, seeing as he didn't know what kinds of things he was about to hear.

A second later, Loran entered the study. The gray-haired Vampire had blood on his hands and shirt from where he had been tending to Gillfrey's companion. "I'm here. Now, what was it that you wished to speak about?" Loran asked and appeared about to sit down on a chair, then glanced down at his bloodied clothes and decided against it. Gillfrey spoke up and said, "First, tell me if Carson is going to recover fully or not."

Loran appeared surprised by the Count's straightforwardness, but Sinclair was completely unfazed. "Well, right now he's stable, but it's still a bit too early to say whether or not he'll live or not," the gray-haired Vampire stated calmly, "By the way, what exactly caused his injuries? I've never seen a wound as severe as the one he had." Gillfrey squared his shoulders back and scanned his eyes across the room.

"That's what I am about to explain," he said flatly and leaned against the back of one of the chairs in front of Sinclair's desk. The Count took in a deep breath and started on his story. "As I stated earlier, the Society has fallen. Earlier in the night, the Stronghold was attacked, and by the time that I got to the source of it all, most of the members that were slaughtered, their blood staining the marble floors of the Grand Hall," Gillfrey said, his eyes heavy with pain and guilt.

Sinclair shook his head and interjected, "They had to have had an army if they took the Stronghold that quickly. How many were there?" The Count sighed heavily and began to pace around behind the chair he had been leaning again. "That's the thing," he said, "there were only three that I was about to count, and I honestly do not believe that there were anymore involved."

Sinclair shook his head in disbelief. Three Vampires had taken down the Society in one night? "They would have had to have been extremely powerful to accomplish something like that, if that's the case. I just can't believe that three Vampires killed so many of the most powerful beings on the Earth," the Vampire Lord said. It was true. The Society was comprised up of the most powerful Vampires, primarily Pureblooded Nobles, in the world; the Count being the most powerful of them all.

"They were very powerful. At least, their leader was. The other two, I'm not so sure about. But I do know how the mastermind behind this coup d'etat obtained his strength," Gillfrey said and paused for a moment, as if to gather his thoughts, and continued, "He killed and consumed the blood of Lord Larousse and Lady Zaria several nights prior." Sinclair felt his eyes widen, and he quickly turned his attention over to Loran, whose gray eyes were wide and horror-stricken.

All the color had drained from his face. "M-My…My parents…..My parents are dead?" he asked in a trembling voice. The girl, Alice, quickly hurried over to his side to comfort him. Gillfrey looked at Loran and said, "So you're the other child of Larousse and Zaria, huh? I thought you looked familiar, much like your father. But by the way you have reacted to hearing this, proves that you had no hand in all of this."

Sinclair saw the appalled-look in Loran's eyes, on top of the grief and shock. "Why the hell would I have played a part in my parents' deaths?! They might have not been the best parents around, especially my father, but that's no reason for me to have wanted them dead! How dare you even say such a thing!" Alice was trying to calm Loran down, to keep him from lashing out further.

Gillfrey remained composed as he said, "Because it was your brother that killed them. He drained them of their blood in order to obtain their powers and turned to the Society, killing nearly everyone that was present at the time. It's only natural that I assumed that you might have been working alongside somehow." Loran's eyes were fixed on the ground in front of him, his gaze far off and distant.

"Z-Zoran…He…He couldn't have done something…..Something so horrible…..It's impossible." The gray-haired Vampire's legs gave up beneath him, and he dropped to the floor. Tears started to spill from his ash-colored eyes as he continued to shake his head and deny the truth that was just placed before him. Alice was now kneeling down beside him, trying desperately to comfort Loran.

Sinclair had always marveled at the sympathy that humans showed when there was trouble in another person's life; it was one of the many things that separated them from Vampires, for it was in the nature of a Vampire to sometimes turn a blind eye to those who were in pain. Alucard, who had been silent up till this point, finally spoke. "What reason would Zoran have to doing something like this? Did he tell you?"

Alucard asked darkly, never once lifting his gaze from the floor. His black hair hid his eyes, but Sinclair didn't have to see the violet-orbs to know that they were pained; next to Sinclair, Zoran was the only other Vampire in the Clan that Alucard bothered to give the time of day to. So, it didn't surprise the Vampire Lord to see his second-in-command shaken up over this news.

Gillfrey shook his head and told him, "No, he never said what his motive for doing this was. But if you all choose to not believe that Zoran did this, then go back and look at Carson. He took an attack that was meant for me. His injuries are Zoran's handiwork." Sinclair heard Loran gasp, and he turned to see the gray-haired Vampire was now shaking his head furiously. Loran had been there, treating the wounds on Carson, and saw up close how severe they had been. Now, he knew what had caused them; his brother.

"No! No, Zoran couldn't have done this!" Loran shouted at Gillfrey. The Count kept a flat expression. "I saw it with my own eyes. I saw the death and chaos he caused, and how there was no remorse or regrets anywhere to be found within him. He's a monster," Gillfrey said coldly. Alice stood up from Loran's side and turned her gaze on Gillfrey, her brown eyes blazing with fury.

"How can you keep saying things like this in front of him?! Can't you see you're only causing him more pain?! Do you not care that you just traumatized him with this news?!" she shouted. Gillfrey's eyes widened in surprise; he obviously didn't expect to be yelled at by anyone.

Shun reached a hand out and grabbed onto her forearm, holding Alice back. Sinclair heard him tell her, "Calm down before you get yourself in trouble." The Vampire Lord waved a nonchalant hand towards the orange-haired girl and said, "Don't mind her, Gillfrey. She's a human. She doesn't know any of the formalities of the Society."

Gillfrey narrowed his faint, purple eyes at Sinclair and asked harshly, "Is your sense of smell broken, Sinclair? She's not human. She's reeks of Vampire, just like everyone else here in this God-forsaken place." Sinclair turned his gaze back onto Alice, and he saw that all of the color had drained from her face, much the same way that Loran's had.

The Vampire Lord, now curious, took a step closer to her and inhaled the air around her, and found that Gillfrey was correct; there wasn't even the faintest scent of human on her. He stepped backin surprise. "You're right; I must have been too busy with things to have noticed it up until now. But I swear to you she was human not three days ago when we brought her back to the enclave for treatment."

Sinclair then turned his gaze onto Shun. "You didn't Turn her, did you?" the Vampire Lord asked harshly. Shun shook his head, his eyes filled with confusion. "No, I didn't Turn her. Alice is human, she's always been human. Besides, she has an Imprint with me. That can only be done between a human and Vampire, right? So explain that to me. If she wasn't human, then we wouldn't have an Imprint," the raven-haired teen said defensively.

Sinclair had almost forgotten about the Imprint, and now that Shun had mentioned it, he realized that he had a point. Imprints were between humans and Vampires, yet, Sinclair could plainly tell that now Alice smelled nothing like a human, that she, as Gillfrey had said, reeked of Vampire. Alucard, who appeared as baffled as everyone else, shook his head and asked, "How is something like this possible? How could she be human one day and Vampire the next?" Shun interjected, "She is not a Vampire!"

Gillfrey seemed to be giving this some thought. His purple eyes then lit up with realization, and he turned back to the orange-haired girl and asked her, "What's your name? Not just your first, but your last name too." Alice, who appeared extremely uncomfortable by the way she refused to meet anyone's gaze in the room, said nervously, "Alice Gehabich."

Both Sinclair's and Gillfrey's eyes widened in surprise. The girl kept her eyes adverted from everyone, even Shun, who was prying her to tell him what was going on. Gillfrey shook his head and said in disbelief, "I thought all of the Gehabich family had died off years ago." Shun narrowed his eyes at Gillfrey and snapped, "What the hell are you going on about?! What's her last name got to do with any of this?"

Sinclair cut the raven-haired teen a glare, which quieted him down, and said, "So, you're one of the surviving descendents of Arthur Gehabich, the deadliest Vampire Hunter of all time?" Alice, without lifting her gaze, slowly nodded her head. Shun stared at her in surprise. This was all Sinclair needed to hear.

He turned to Gillfrey and said, "I think I know enough of what's going on now in order to provide an explanation. You recall the old story from all those years ago about Arthur, after he was Turned by Countess Lucia? The one where he was rumored to have gone to a specialist to have his powers sealed, but had to settle for sealing the powers of his descendents?" Gillfrey nodded.

"Yeah, I remember that story well. My parents used to tell it to me all the time when I was young." Sinclair glanced back over at Alice and said, "Well, it looks like that story was true. The way it went was that Arthur sealed his powers for his future children so they would not have to suffer as he did. They had no Bloodlust, no enhanced senses or rapid healing. They were humans with Vampire blood, and the only way to have these powers remerge was by if one of them drank the blood of a Vampire."

Beside Alice, Sinclair saw Shun's eyes widen with realization; he was putting the puzzle together. The Vampire Lord turned back to Gillfrey and said, "A few nights ago, she was injured, and in order to save her life, Shun allowed her to consume his blood, unknowingly placing an Imprint on the two of them since he had no knowledge of the matter. And as you may know, Gillfrey, Imprints are instantaneous, meaning that the moment his blood took effect, the Imprint was already there. Only after that did his blood start to reawaken the hundreds of years of sleeping Vampire blood in her veins. She was human when the Imprint was placed, but slowly began to have her Vampire heritage come back after that."

Gillfrey tapped his chin thoughtfully and said, "In other words, the Imprint remained as her Vampire nature started to take back over." Sinclair nodded and told him, "That's the only logical way that I can explain this. Vampires are not supposed to be able to form an Imprint between one another, but I fear that we have just discovered a chink in nature's armor."

Gillfrey glanced around the room, his eyes stopping on every face present, and then finally came to a rest at Sinclair. "What kind of three-ring circus are you running here?!" he shouted, "You have Turned Vampires here, half-breeds, Vampires with Imprints, and a descendant to one of the most dangerous Vampire Hunters that ever roamed this planet! It's all blasphemous! You see, Sinclair, these are the kinds of things that happen when you do not follow the Society's laws!" Gillfrey then turned his enraged eyes over to Alice.

He pointed to her and said, "But I think out of all of the sickening things that I've seen here so far, she's is one of the worst. Not only is she a Vampire that has an Imprint with another, but she is also related to a killer of our kind. And there's no telling what other tainted things lurk in her blood." Gillfrey's words had reached their limit, for Alice stormed up to him and land a well-placed slap on the Count's face.

The loud pop reverberated throughout the study, echoing in the silence of the room. Sinclair looked on in surprise, but felt oddly satisfied by this. He looked on at Alice, who had a river of tears rolling down her face. Her hands were trembling at her sides, despite the fact that they were balled up into fists.

Gillfrey slowly turned to face her, and his pale features revealed a perfectly red handprint on his cheek; Sinclair didn't bother to hide his grin. "Filth," he spat. This sparked new rage in Alice's eyes, and she readied herself to strike at the Count again, but this time, he caught her by the wrist. He held on tightly and twisted her hand, causing her to cry out, and in one swift motion, tossed her to ground.

Alice stayed there, keeping her face hidden out of shame behind her thick hair. Her shoulders shook as sobs racked her body. "Alice!" Shun called out and ran to her side. Gillfrey shook his head in disapproval and said, "I don't know what's worse. That you had the gall to try and strike me a second time, or that he actually cares enough about you to run to your rescue. Either way, it makes me sick and also makes me hate that I was desperate enough to come to such a place for help."

The Count then turned on his heels and left out of the study, leaving behind his wake of emotional damage on everyone, except Sinclair. A moment later, Alice scrambled up to her feet and fled from the study, Shun trailing right behind her and calling out her name.

The Vampire Lord turned his head and looked over at Loran, who was still sitting on the ground in a state of shock. "Alucard, get Loran to his room, will you?" Sinclair asked. His second-in-command nodded and helped the gray-haired Vampire to his feet, and lead him out of the study.

Now that he was all alone, the Vampire Lord looked down into the glass of blood that he still held in his hand. A sad smile then graced his features. "You really haven't changed at all, Gillfrey," the Vampire Lord said sadly and drank another sip of the blood.

* * *

Big, big chapter! A lot of stuff coming out into the light and a lot of jumbled emotions from everyone, and it only continues from here. But I hope the whole Imprint/Vampire/Human thing was explained well enough in this chapter too, since somebody asked me about it. Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed, so read and please leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	10. A Part Of Life

_~O~_

Alice ran through the hallways of the enclave, ignoring the strange looks that she got from people that she passed by. Behind her, she could hear Shun calling out her name, but she didn't stop; he was the last person she wanted to face now. So, Alice ran faster until she reached her room, the one that she had originally woken up in after being unconscious for nearly three days.

Her hand wrapped around the doorknob as she hurried inside and slammed the door shut behind her. As soon as she did that, she turned around and locked the deadbolt, preventing anyone from gaining entry into her room. Alice heaved heavy breaths, from both running and crying. She leaned her forehead against the door, her palms also touching the smooth, wooden surface as well.

It was then that Alice noticed how badly her hands were trembling. Fresh tears began to roll down her cheeks. Why had this had to happen to her? What had she ever done to deserve this? Had she not lived her life well enough? Had she not been a nice, upstanding citizen? She sobbed as she thought about these things. Why did it always seem like the worst things happened to the best people?

Alice slid down the door and sat on the ground below, the last of her strength and will-power now gone from her. After what happened in Sinclair's study, she was drained and left exhausted; all she wanted to do was close her eyes and forget all of it. She shut her eyes, and when she did, her mind began to drift back to Gillfrey, to how his face had turned up in disgust at the sight of her towards the end of their conversation.

Alice unconscious began to rub the spot on her wrist where the white-haired Vampire had grabbed her and thrown her to the ground; it throbbed slightly. She then thought about Shun's reaction. He had appeared surprised. Then again, he should have been, seeing as he had just discovered that she wasn't what he thought she was. She also thought about how, when accused of being a Vampire, Shun had gotten defensive and denied it by saying she was human.

Alice didn't know if he had done that in her defense, or if he didn't want to believe it; she hoped for the latter of the two. Alice jumped when a rapid knocking sounded from the other side of the door, followed by Shun's voice. "Alice, are you in there?" he asked, "It's me. Let me in, please. I want to talk to you." His voice sounded concerned, but at the same time, Alice thought she picked up a slight bit of shrillness to his words; maybe it was all her imagination.

She remained hesitant to open the door, even as Shun pleaded for her to let him in. She was afraid to know what he would say to her, or how he might look at her. Would he be mad at her for not telling him something like this, especially when he had trusted her enough to tell her that he was a Vampire?

In a way, that possibility made Alice feel like a hypocrite. He had trusted her with such a sensitive, dark secret. And yet, she had been unable to go to him and do the same. "Alice, please let me it. I just want to make sure you're okay," he said through the thick door. Alice bit down on her lower lip, and if she put anymore pressure, she might have drawn her own blood.

Finally, after sitting on the floor for several more minutes, she stood up and unlocked the latch on the door and walked towards the ornate bed across the room. "It's open," she said as she plopped down on the plush blankets. The doorknob turned and Shun stepped inside. His eyes were wide, but when they saw her, they softened a bit. "I was starting to think you wouldn't let me in," he said with a sad smile, an attempt to lighten the heavy mood that Alice had created around her.

She lowered her head, hiding her eyes from him with the bangs of her orange hair. Alice felt him sit down beside her on the bed, but she didn't look up and meet the gaze she knew he had on her. "Are you okay?" he asked. Although, Alice had a feeling he already knew the answer to that question. "Yeah," she replied coldly, "Fine. Just fine." The iciness in her own voice was enough to surprise even her, so she knew that Shun had to have been taken aback as well.

She hadn't meant to put so much hostility behind her words, but she was still reeling from her previous encounter with Gillfrey. _I really shouldn't take any of this out on Shun. It's none of his fault…., _she thought to herself. A moment of silence passed between them before Shun spoke up again. This time, he said, "What about your wrist? It isn't hurt, is it?"

Without looking up, Alice moved her wrist around to show that it was intact, despite the slight throbbing she still felt from where Gillfrey had twisted it in an unnatural way. Another moment of silence went by, making the air even more tense, almost to the point of it being unbearable. But this time, it was Alice that broke the silence that hung between them. She slowly lifted her tear-stained gaze up to look at Shun and asked him, "Are you mad at me?" Shun's eyes lit up with surprise. "Mad at you? Why would I be mad?" he asked in confusion.

Alice straightened up a bit and went back to keeping her gaze adverted from him. "Because…..," she started but couldn't find the right words to say. What _did _she want to say? _Because I'm a Vampire? Because I'm not human like you thought? Because…..Because…_She shook her head and stopped the thoughts before they caused a fresh wave of tears to come crashing down.

Shun leaned towards her a bit, close enough that she could feel the heat radiating off of his body, and he asked her, "You think I'm mad because of what happened back in Sinclair's study? About them figuring out your past and that….." His voice trailed off towards the end, and that might as well have been a knife in Alice's stomach. _Even Shun can't say those words, _she thought bitterly.

Alice's hands, which had stopped trembling, laid in her lap in tight fists. Her eyes stung with new tears. "Yeah," she said unsteadily, "That's exactly what I mean. Are you mad because I'm some Vampire descendant of a Vampire Hunter?" Her words hitched towards the end as a sob escaped her. Out of the corner of her eye, Alice saw Shun shake his head.

"I….I don't really know how I feel about all of that, since it was all just suddenly said. I haven't had enough time to think over it and know how I should take it. But I can tell you for certain that I'm not mad at you. I mean, there's no reason for me to be. None of this was your fault." He was trying to make his words gentle, but they weren't doing much for her; Alice was still a torrent of emotions on the inside.

Shun ran a hand through his black hair and said, "Let's look at it like this. You have no proof that you're related to that Arthur guy, right? So, you can't say for certain that you're one of his descendants." Alice turned and looked right at Shun.

She told him, "I know I'm related to him. I've been having dreams where I've seen things happening in Arthur's life, things like him being Turned and sealing away his descendants' Vampire powers. It's like they're memories that have started to come back to me. And besides…..how else would you explain me suddenly becoming a Vampire so quickly, when I was human not three days ago?!"

She hadn't meant to raise her voice towards the end, but she was just so frustrated. And right now, Shun was the only one for her to let her emotions out on. Alice buried her face into her hands. She could feel the warmth of tears on her palms. "I didn't want any of this," she sobbed under her breath. Shun, who had been close to her a moment ago, drew back and said coldly, "It's not like I asked for this either."

Feeling as if she had been slapped by his words, Alice removed her face from her hands and looked at him in bewilderment. "What do you mean?" she asked dumbly. Shun crossed his arms over his chest and stood up from the bed.

"I didn't ask to be human one day and become a Vampire the next. It all happened to me in one night without much of a reason other than Loran didn't want to see some innocent idiot die. There have been too many times when I think that it would have been better if I had died during the Transition. And not only better for me, but better for you as well. That way, you wouldn't be involved in this mess either," he said harshly.

Alice hadn't even thought about what Shun had just mentioned. It hadn't occurred to her that, in a way, he had faced the same problem as she was going through right then. "This is different," she said defensively. Shun raised an eyebrow and asked, "How is this any different?"

She felt her anger bubble up a bit as her emotions took another turn. "It's different because you were at least human at some point! Me? I went through my entire life thinking I was human, that I was normal, only to go and suddenly discover that everything I've ever known has been a lie!"

The sudden burst of energy she got from her anger, vanished and left her weak; she didn't think she could keep on going through with all of this. Alice brought her hand up to her face and wiped away more tears with the heel of her palm. Her face, at this point, looked as if she had splashed water on it.

Shun sighed and sat back down beside her. "I'm sorry," he said heavily, "I let my problems get mixed up in this as well. What I was trying to get at, though, is that I know kind of what you're going through. I know what you're feeling right now; anger, pain, confusion. I went through it all too. I was just trying to make you feel less alone in all of this."

Alice felt touched by his concern; even when everything was suddenly turned upside down, Shun was still looking out for her. She wiped her face dry with the back of her hand for the millionth time and told him, "Thanks….It's just…..I don't know how to handle all of this properly yet…..It all came off to me as a major shock when I first found out, and to have Gillfrey throw it in my face only made it worse."

She shuddered at the memory of the Count's reaction, and how cold and hostile it had been; he hated her. Shun placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, his warmth chasing away the chill that had seemed to have unknowingly encompassed Alice, and said, "It'll get easier, I promise you that much. Trust me, even though I've come to accept this, there are still days that I want to refuse to believe it, that I think that I'll wake up and it will all have been a long, drawn-out dream. You…..You just learn to live with it."

Alice nodded. Oddly enough, she felt a bit more at ease, but that didn't mean she had already come to terms with her fate. If anything, she was far from coming to terms with it. She was about to say something to Shun when she was hit with another, unannounced wave of vertigo.

Alice groaned and held the sides of her head as she leaned forward. "Alice?" Shun asked, keeping a supporting hand on her shoulders in case she fell forward. The vertigo and nausea eased up a bit, but still lingered around, causing Alice to be uncomfortable.

"I'm fine…..Just a headache…..I've been getting them a lot lately," she said hoarsely. Shun narrowed his eyes at her and said, "I don't think they're just headaches, Alice." Confused, she glanced up at him. "Then if it's not a headache, then what is it?" she asked, not believing that it could be anything else. Shun kept his expression unwavering as he told her, "I think it might be symptoms of Bloodlust starting to set in."

Alice felt her eyes widen and her stomach flip. Bloodlust? She had seen Shun when he had fallen victim to it. He was normally in some kind of pain, and if it ever got severe enough, he would totally lose himself, as she found out not long ago. The thought of her body craving the crimson substance made her sick to her stomach. "I-Impossible," she said and shook her head stubbornly.

Shun's expression softened and was sympathetic. "I know it's not what you want to hear, but it's more than likely the truth. You have to remember that your Vampire nature has started to return to you, and sadly, Bloodlust is a part of that nature. And with that, you should have known that you'd have to drink blood eventually." The thought had crossed Alice's mind, but she figured she must have been so deep in denial, that she just assumed that she would never have to commit the deed of drinking blood.

She continued to shake her head, but all that did was antagonize her headache. Shun sighed and told her, "It took me some getting used to, and I still don't like it, but it's a part of this life." Alice was about to speak when she was hit with another, even worse, wave of vertigo, one that was strong enough to take her breath away and cause her to gasp.

She nearly fell forward, and if it hadn't been for Shun, she would have landed on the floor. He held her up, keeping her from falling. Her body shivered, even though she wasn't cold; if anything, she felt like she was on fire. "You need to get blood into your system. Now," Shun said sternly.

Alice shook her head and said defiantly, "N-No…..No…..I-I'm fine." She didn't want to drink blood. It was just so strange, and the thought of it made her feel sick to her stomach. But at the same time, another part of her, a more animalist part, craved the taste of blood. It scared her.

"Here, go ahead and take some of mine. You need to drink some now before you fall too deep into your Bloodlust and hurt yourself or somebody else," Shun said as he removed some of his shoulder-length hair to the side, exposing his neck. Alice found herself staring at his neck, an animal instinct drawing her to the vein that she could just barely make out underneath his skin.

But she quickly got a hold of herself. "N-No," she said weakly. She could feel herself slipping away, into the grips of what was known as Bloodlust, and she knew Shun was right; if she didn't drink any blood, she would lose it. "Just take it," he told her, "For all we know, my blood might be the only blood you can drink, just as your blood is the only kind I can consume because of the Imprint. If that's the case, then you won't be able to hold down any of the blood from the enclave's storeroom; I should know."

Alice's mouth was dry; she didn't know what to do. The edges of her vision started to grow foggy as she slipped further away. Shun looked dead at her with his amber eyes and told her, "Trust me, alright?" Alice, feeling utterly defeated and exhausted, nodded.

She leaned in close to his neck, stopping only mere inches away, and happened to glanced up at Shun; he looked as nervous as she felt. It then hit Alice that he had never had his blood drained like she had. She closed her eyes and gathered her strength; she had no choice.

Alice realized that her canine teeth had sharpened down to points, readying themselves to break through skin and siphon out blood, and she did just that. She punctured through the skin of Shun's neck, and she felt him flinch and tense up.

But not a moment later, he relaxed. Alice figured that he must have experienced the same thing she did whenever her blood was taken; a moment of pain, and then nothing but a numb sensation. She then felt the first drops of blood touch her tongue. The crimson liquid had a metallic-taste and was warm. Alice couldn't help herself now that she had tasted it; her remerging Vampire nature craved the substance after years of being locked away.

She now drank easily, the fact that she was really drinking blood hardly even fazing her. But a thought did cross her mind, and that was something that Gillfrey had mentioned earlier. He had said something about somebody committing an ultimate taboo for Vampires by drinking the blood of another Vampire.

Was she committing this taboo as well, even though it was possible that it couldn't be helped? If she was, then she already knew that this would cause Gillfrey to despise her even more. But she needed the blood, and Shun had offered his in her time of need. Alice took one last taste of his blood and removed her fangs. When she did, she could see the two, small puncture wounds she had left behind on his neck.

She quickly turned away and wiped any excess blood from her mouth with the back of her hand. Alice could feel that her face was flushed, but whether it was from embarrassment or from drinking the blood, she didn't know. She turned back around to face Shun, and found that he had fallen back on the bed and was out-cold.

She remembered when he had first taken blood from her. He had taken too much, and Alice had been tired afterwards; she figured this was the same situation. Alice yawned and felt her eyes growing heavy as well. She was drained, physically and emotionally, from the day's, or rather night's, events.

And on top of that, her mind was at ease after consuming the blood and putting an end to her Bloodlust. No longer feeling the will to stay awake and fight against her fatigue, Alice laid back on the bed beside Shun, and the moment her eyes closed, she fell asleep.

* * *

Another day, another chapter. Sorry for not uploading yesterday; it was my birthday and I had gone to take my driving test, which i passed! Yay! Now, I can finally stop depending on people for rides. And Monday, well, my friend wouldn't leave my house. So, yeah. Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, which ended up being way longer than I wanted, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	11. Two Different Worlds

_~O~_

Blood, there was so much blood. Alice stared at the dark, red liquid that soaked the floor, her eyes wide with shock. The blood stained the wooden floorboards, leaving behind its permanent mark. The small room she found herself in was lit dimly by candlelight, but that was all she needed in order to see an even more horrifying site just beyond the blood. There, against the far corner of the room, knelt Arthur Gehabich, a motionless body laying on the ground in front of him.

His long, orange hair hid his face from Alice, but she knew that his expression had to be one of horror or disgust. Arthur lifted his hands and stared down at the sticky, red blood that coated his skin. Alice could see that his hands were trembling. He brought his fingers up near his face and licked the blood from his skin. All while he did this, Alice could just barely hear him swearing under his breath; he hated himself for what he had done. When no blood remained on his hands, he stood up.

Arthur's clothes were stained with the blood of his victim; a permanent reminder of his deed. Slowly, he took several steps back from the lifeless body, and stared down at it, as if waiting for it to move or come back from the dead. He stood there for what, to Alice, felt like the longest time before he finally walked across the room and took a cloak that was draped over the back of a chair.

Arthur slung the cloak on over his shoulders, took one last glance at the body, and then lifted the cloak's hood over his head, hiding his face almost completely; Alice could still make out the bloodstains on his lips, though. He then turned on his heels and left out of the victim's house, leaving Alice all by herself with the body. She turned her attention over to the motionless form that lie on the floor, and slowly made her way towards it; she wanted to see what kind of damage Arthur had done.

The person, whoever it had once been, was almost unrecognizable. The face was littered with claw marks and caked with blood, leaving any facial features undistinguishable. The neck of the mystery man had been nothing short of ripped completely apart, and Alice couldn't help but wonder how his head was still attached to the body. She tried to look over the rest of the body, but after the site of the face and throat, she decided against it; it made her stomach flip to know that Arthur had killed and fed in such a gruesome manner.

Alice shook her head and started to leave the house when she heard the sounds of people outside. Curious, she made her way over to a window and peered outside just as the door was kicked down. In stormed a burly-faced man holding a flaming torch in one hand, and a short sword in the other. His gaze swept from the dead body in the corner of the room, over to Alice, where it turned even more hostile.

"There! That has to be the monster! Kill it!" he shouted while pointing a meaty finger at her. Alice felt her eyes widen, and she held up her hands defensively. "N-No, I didn't….," she tried to explain, then felt something wet and sticky on her hands. When she looked down, she found them coated with dark, crimson blood, along with her clothes; it looked just as if she had ripped somebody apart herself.

A second later, several more men ran into the small house, all carrying weapons of some sort, and it occurred to Alice what they were; they were Vampire Hunters. She felt her heartbeat pick up with adrenaline. They were going to kill her, even though she hadn't killed anyone, despite the fact that blood was on her hands. "No, you don't understand. I didn't kill-" The burly-faced man cut her off in the middle of her explanation.

"Don't you dare use the words of man, beast!" he bellowed at her and pointed the tip of his short sword at her. Alice shook her head, refusing to believe that this was happening. "You die tonight, vile demon!" the burly man shouted and ordered for his group to charge.

The party of Vampire Hunters ran at Alice. She had nowhere to go; she was trapped. Her eyes frantically searched for a way out, but when she brought her focus back on the Vampire Hunters, the burly man was only mere inches from burying the blade of his sword into her flesh. And right before it would have made contact, Alice jolted awake, shooting straight up into a sitting position in the bed.

She cried out and patted herself, feeling for any wounds or blood; she only felt her racing heart and the dampness of sweat on her clothes. Beside her, Alice felt something move, causing her to jump. "What is going on?" Shun asked groggily. Alice instantly calmed down upon hearing his voice; his presence had completely slipped her mind.

She breathed a heavy sigh and told him wearily, "I-I…..I had a bad dream. Sorry I woke you." Even though she knew it had been all a dream conjured up by her mind, Alice continued to look around the room, making sure she was really in the enclave, and not in someplace that existed during her ancestor's time. Shun sat up beside her, his hair slightly messy from his sleep.

"It must have been some bad dream if it made you freak out like that," he stated, "What was it about, if you don't mind me asking." Alice wasn't sure if she wanted to talk about it and relive the horror, but at the same time, she figured that some peace would be brought to her mind if she did tell Shun. In the end, she decided against telling him. "I don't really remember it all," she lied, "Just that it scared me." Shun nodded.

"If you say so," he said through a yawn and glanced over at a digital clock on the nightstand beside him, "God, it's noon. No wonder I'm still so damn tired." Alice found it strange, complaining about being tired at noon, when she herself felt wide awake. Then again, she had just been jolted awake by her nightmare.

But she could see Shun clearly through the dimly lit room, and how his eyes were heavy with sleep. "You can go back to sleep, if you want," she told him. Shun yawned and said, "I was planning on it." He then laid back down, and within minutes, his breathing slowed to a steady rhythm, signaling that he had fallen back asleep. Alice debated whether or not she wanted to try and go back to sleep, but figured that she probably would be unable to.

Not only was she wide awake from her nightmare, but she also feared of falling back asleep and having another dream. So, she carefully and quietly swung her legs over the side of the bed and placed her feet down on the cold, stone floor. As she stood up, the springs in the bed creaked, and she stopped for a moment to see if they disturbed Shun; it hadn't even so much as fazed him.

Flooded with relief, Alice silently made her way to the bathroom and carefully closed the door behind her. The bathroom, much like the one back in Shun's room, was luxurious with its marble counter-tops and stone floors; a thing she still was unable to picture in the liar of Vampires. But Alice figured she'd eventually get used to the strange and bizarre. She made her way over to the sink and turned the faucet on.

Cold water came rushing out, and Alice cupped her hands together to catch some it. When her hands couldn't hold anymore, she splashed the water on her face, letting the biting cold chase away the last of the sleep that lingered in her mind. After drying her face off, Alice quietly walked back into the bedroom. She saw the faint outline of Shun's sleeping form and envied him, for she wished that she was able to sleep so peacefully.

Instead of a blissful rest, Alice was plagued by dreams about events from long ago. She sighed and silently left the room, pulling the door to behind her. The enclave, which she had only experienced when it was bustling with life and activity, was eerily quietly, the kind of quiet that was almost unbearable.

Alice walked down the hallways until she made it to the main room, the place where Count Gillfrey had first made his appearance. She stared at the place where he had knelt over Carson's injured body, and felt a tight knot form in her stomach; she didn't like Gillfrey the least bit. Not after the things he said and did to her back in Sinclair's study. Alice shook her head and caught sight of two, large wooden doors in the main room. She strode up to them and could see faint lines of sunlight leaking through cracks around the hinges.

Alice then felt a longing for the outside, for the sun and the fresh air. She had been cooped up for days in the enclave, away from natural light, so she figured that some time outside would do her some good. Carefully, she tugged the heavy handles of the doors, opening them up and causing tons of light to spill into the dark enclave. Alice squinted her eyes against the blinding light until they adjusted.

When they did, she walked out until she reached the mouth of a cave, and she felt overwhelmed by all of the colors; it was almost as if she had forgotten what the world looked like in such a short amount of time. There were the vibrant greens of the grass, and the leaves that were starting to turn golden as Fall approached. The sky, dotted with white, fluffy clouds, was the lightest of blues.

Alice smiled and took in a deep breath of the crisp, fresh air before she stepped out of the mouth of the cave and into the sunlight. The moment her exposed skin hit the light, she felt her skin heat up like it did if she were starting to develop a sunburn.

Taken aback, Alice ran back to seek refuge in the shade of the cave's mouth, and looked down at her arms. They were lightly pink, as if they had started to develop the beginning stages of a sunburn. It then occurred to Alice that Vampires were extremely sensitive to the sun; they wouldn't burst into flames, though. At least, Alice didn't think they would, unless they somehow stayed out in it too long.

She thought back to all the times Shun had worn jackets out during the day, despite the heat, and she realized that she wouldn't be able to handle the sun unless she did the same. The thought of not being able to enjoy the daytime, something that she would have been able to do only a couple days ago, saddened Alice.

This was, yet, another part of her old life that she would have to give up in order to live out the new one that had been placed before her. She closed her eyes and sighed heavily. What other things would she have to give up? Her friends? Alice's eyes shot open; she had completely forgotten all about them.

_It's been days since I snuck out that night. They're probably worried sick, or think I'm dead, _she thought frantically as she began to pace around at the mouth of the cave. She had to get in touch with them, see them and let them know she was alive and okay. Well, maybe not entirely okay, but she still had to contact them somehow; they had every right to know that she wasn't dead in some alleyway.

What would she tell them, though, when they asked where she had been the past couple of days? She shook her head. It had been one thing to lie and cover for Shun's secret, but she wasn't so sure she could lie for herself. Alice ran a hand through her thick, orange hair, which, she realized, was in desperate need of being washed.

Her mind wasn't together enough for her to be thinking about what she would tell her friends; she still had to come to terms with her own drastic change, and she was far from that.

Alice, suddenly feeling tired from all of her mind's ramblings, slowly backed away from the mouth of the cave and headed back towards the door that led into the enclave. When she was back inside, she slowly closed the heavy doors, closing off the world of light on the other side, and plunging everything back into darkness, the world in which she now belonged to.

* * *

There won't be an upload tomorrow, because I have a football game tomorrow afternoon. Saturday I might be able to though, but no promises. Anywho, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	12. Harsh Realities

_~O~_

Alucard paced through the hallways of the enclave, his mind distant and far-off. He had just left Loran's room after several hours of trying his best to get the gray-haired Vampire to calm down, but Alucard wasn't exactly skilled at consoling others, especially when he needed some consoling of his own. Alucard, just like Loran, was also having a rather difficult time coming to terms with Count Gillfrey's news of what Zoran had done.

He didn't believe that Zoran, quiet and distant Zoran, had done all of the things that Count said he had. But what reason would the Count of the Society have to make up such a lie? That was what puzzled Alucard and made him all the more confused. He just could not wrap his mind around this at all. For so many years he had been around Zoran, and even favored him more than most of the others in the enclave because he related to the poor kid; he saw himself in Zoran.

Now, to think that somebody that always appeared so frightened and nervous, had turned around and killed his own parents, and members of the Society, just blew Alucard's mind. The second-in-command shook his head, which had begun to throb with a headache.

Who would have thought that Gillfrey's sudden presence in the enclave would have turned everything upside down so quickly? Now, on top of the news about Zoran, there was also the matter of what went down between the Count and the orange-haired girl, Alice. It had been revealed shortly after that she was a Vampire, something that nobody had noticed until that point, mainly due to rather rare and complex circumstances.

And not only that, but she was also the descendant of the legendary Vampire Hunter, Arthur Gehabich, a man that Alucard had heard tales about when he was young. Of course, the story always ended the same, no matter how it was told; it always ended with him being Turned by Countess Lucia.

Alucard had always known that part of the story to be true, seeing as it had been written down in records to preserve one of the biggest accomplishments for Vampires of that time, but he had still been very surprised to have one of the rare descendants of the legendary Vampire Hunter before him, especially when there had been no previous signs displayed that could have given away any hints about it.

And then there had been Gillfrey's hostile reaction to Alice when all of that was said and done. He had called the poor girl filth, and had thrown her to the ground when she tried to stand up for herself. _At least she got in one good slap on him, _the second-in-command thought with amusement.

But it was clear now that Gillfrey wasn't one who was partial to something outside of the norm of the Society, which would also mean that if he found out about Alucard was half-human and half-Vampire, considering he didn't already known, then that could spell trouble for him as well. Things had stopped making sense altogether. Alucard sighed heavily and continued on his walk through the enclave.

It was late, and the rest of the Clan had gone to their rooms for the day. Alucard should have done the same hours ago, but the conversation with Gillfrey had gone into the bleak hours of the morning. And now, the second-in-command was feeling the lack of sleep beginning to weigh on him. He let out a yawn, a signal that his body was trying to tell him just how tired he was.

A moment later, he passed by Sinclair's room. The door was wide open, revealing the simplicity of the room. Many people would have figured that the Vampire Lord would have had an elaborate, extravagant room, but it was quite the opposite. There were no expensive tapestries or famous paintings hanging on the walls, and the bed and rest of the furniture was only slightly more ornate, but not enough to be noticeable or breathtaking.

It was just a room, and an empty room at that. Sinclair's bed was empty, the blankets and sheets pulled taut and undisturbed. Alucard quickly figured out that, if the Vampire Lord wasn't in his room at this time of day, then there could only be one other place; the study.

The second-in-command sighed and headed in that direction. He navigated the hallways with ease, and perhaps even unconsciously going down the right hallways without even realizing; it was so second-nature, walking through the enclave. Alucard finally reached the study within minutes. He opened the door, and little to his surprise, found Sinclair inside.

The Vampire Lord was asleep at his desk, his head laid down on top of a stack of papers that he had made into a make-shift pillow. Sometimes Sinclair's sleeping habits worried the second-in-command. There were times when Sinclair would work on something days and nights at a time, never stopping for even a moment of rest until he finished the problem at hand.

And when that happened, the Vampire Lord would finally drop and sleep for a couple days straight. It wasn't healthy. Alucard shook his head and heaved a heavy sigh at the sight. The sound of his sigh, which had been no louder than a whisper, caused the Vampire Lord to stir; it was common-knowledge that he was a light sleeper. Heavy-eyed and groggy, Sinclair sat up and looked around the room until his eyes locked onto his second-in-command.

"Oh, it's you, Alucard," he said, his words slurred with sleep, "Do you have any idea how early in the morning it is? What means do you have for waking me?" It was also common-knowledge in the enclave that Sinclair could also be a tad more irritable when he first woke up, so Alucard made sure to watch his words carefully, and not get on the Vampire Lord's bad side over something stupid.

"I went past your room a second ago and didn't see you in there, so I figured this was on the only other place you would be," he explained, "I hadn't meant to wake you, only to check in and make sure you hadn't gone missing or that Gillfrey hadn't done something to you."

Alucard wasn't going to lie, he didn't trust Gillfrey very much, and for very good reasons after the drama that had unfolded in the study. A sly grin formed on Sinclair's lips, one that Alucard knew as amusement. "Well, thank you for your concern, Alucard, but I assure you I am fine. I only fell asleep at my desk," the Vampire Lord said and lifted his arms above his head to stretch his sleeping muscles. Alucard nodded.

"Very well, then," the second-in-command said, "I will leave now and allow you to resume your rest." Alucard turned on his heels and started towards the door of the study, when Sinclair stopped him. "Alucard, a moment, please?" The second-in-command stopped and turned around, confused as to what Sinclair would want. "Yes, Sir?" he asked. Sinclair straightened up in his chair, and instantly took on of the appearance of the leader that everyone in the enclave had come to know.

He said, "Whatever Gillfrey may say about you or others here in the enclave, don't take his words to heart, Alucard. I've known him for quite a while, so I know that all of his so-called righteous spill is only that of the views that the Society has put into his brain. He's been a part of the Society for his entire life, born and raised in it, so he is close-minded and has no other way of thinking. Just keep that in mind."

Alucard could almost hear the pain in Sinclair's voice, as well as see it in his eyes. He figured that Gillfrey and Sinclair had known each other from the way they spoke to one another earlier, but Alucard still found it difficult to believe that the Vampire Lord would have ever associated with such a bigot of the Society. But he nodded nonetheless. "Understood, Sir."

Sinclair smiled and said, "Good. Now, go on and turn in for the day. You look like you're about to fall asleep right where you're standing." Alucard chuckled and said, "Of course, Sir." He then turned on his heels and left the study, closing the door behind him so Sinclair wouldn't be disturbed if he fell asleep at his desk again, which Alucard had a feeling that he would.

The second-in-command started down the hallway as he made his way back to his own room, which was past the main room. So, he started in that direction, passing through a labyrinth of cavernous tunnels and such. When he reached the main room, Alucard caught a slight glimpse of Alice as she vanished down a neighboring hallway. He raised an eyebrow, wondering what she was doing wandering around the enclave at such an ungodly hour.

Even if she wasn't used to being a Vampire yet, she should have been feeling the natural need to rest during the day, just as humans felt the need to rest at night. Alucard narrowed his eyes and turned down the same hallway she had gone down, following after her. When he finally caught up with her and now lagged behind her by about ten feet, he called out to her with, "Hey, what are you doing up?"

She jumped and twirled around to face Alucard. Her expression relaxed when she realized it was him. Through the darkness, even though his eyesight wasn't as good as other Vampires', he could see that her face was wet from where she had been crying. "I…..I just needed to walk around and get some air," she said nervously, her voice unsteady. She wrapped her arms around herself, as if suddenly chilled.

Alucard couldn't help but think about just how human her response her was to all of this. As a human, when everything gets turned upside down, they become small and weak; only a very few try to fight back and take things in full-stride. But it was clear to Alucard by the expression on her face that now that she knew the truth about her lineage, she felt that life wasn't fair, that the worst possible thing in the world had happened to her.

_Such a human response. _It made him sick. He narrowed his eyes at her and said, "I know this is a major change for somebody like you to accept, but just keep this in mind; life can be a hell of a lot crueler, so don't think that what's happened to you is the worst thing that's ever happened to somebody."

Alice cast her eyes down to the ground in front of her. "I take it you know something worse than this?" she asked without looking at him.

Alucard crossed his arms over his chest and said, "As a matter of fact, I do. Try having to live with knowing that you'd never be accepted anywhere because you're some half-breed that was the result of an affair between a human and Vampire, one that was only taken in by their father out of guilt and then tossed aside when he had another son that wasn't some kind of mutt. So, yes, I do know worse than what you're going through."

Before he gave Alice a chance to respond, he turned briskly on his heels and started walking away from her, but he stopped short and glanced over his shoulder at her.

"Everyone here has a problem of some kind or another, so you're not that different from anyone else here. Some have had it easier than others, and others, not so much. This place, this Clan, is a second chance for many of us to start over and have a chance at a normal life, me included. It can be one for you too, if you choose to let it be." And with that, Alucard turned back around and headed for his room.

* * *

Well, we won last night's game, and our band totally rocked! I'm still pumped from it! Anywho, I have a bit of an announcement to make concerning a future story. Many of you remember my past two Halloween special fanfics, the ones about the zombies? Well, I'm planning on doing another Halloween special for October; not another zombie fic, so don't take it like that. **The title of this new story will be _Circus For A Psycho _based off the song by Skillet!** -pops a bottle of champagne- Hopefully I will be done with this story by the time October rolls around, but if I am not, then I'll have to put this on hold until I finish my Halloween special. I think you all will enjoy it, though. :) Anyway, I hope you all liked this chapter, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	13. A Dangerous Mind

_~O~_

Alucard's words had gotten to Alice; they had been the only thing on her mind as she walked back to her room. He had told her about his own past, and how everyone in the enclave had their own dark secrets. The thought that others around her were troubled as well, hadn't even crossed her mind since arriving at the enclave.

Everyone she had seen thus far, with perhaps the exception of Loran and Alucard, had always seemed happy and content with their surroundings, worry-free. None of them ever appeared to be troubled. _This Clan is a second chance, _Alucard had said.

Maybe that was why everyone was so at ease and didn't show any signs of being haunted by their pasts. But all that did was make Alice wonder what kind of dark secrets the Clan members were keeping concealed beneath the surface. Just how many of them were still secretly haunted by their past? She shook her head; her mind still wasn't anywhere near proper working order yet, so there was no point in delving too deeply into any of this.

Alice sighed and returned back to her room. She gingerly pushed the door open, which she had only pulled to when she left earlier, and stepped through the threshold. The hinges of the heavy door creaked a bit, making sound when she wished to move silently, but it didn't appear to bother Shun, who was still sleeping soundly, completely oblivious to the fact that she had left.

Alice walked over to the side of the bed and saw that he had moved over, leaving no room on either side for her to lay down, if she had wanted to. Alice, despite feeling fatigued and drained again, didn't wish to go back to sleep; she was still afraid of having another nightmare like the one she had had earlier.

So, seeing as laying back down in the bed was out of the option, unless she woke Shun up and told him to move, she strode across the room to a sofa that sat in the far corner. It was a piece of Victorian-style furniture, with ornate swirls carved into the dark, polished wood that surrounded the smooth, red fabric of the cushions.

Alice sat down in it, surprised to find that the couch was as soft as it was, even though it looked as if it hadn't been used very much. Shortly after sitting down, she started to feel her eyes grow heavy, and her mind slip away as sleep started to take hold, but she fought back. Alice refused to fall asleep and have another one of those nightmares.

She was tired of seeing Arthur Gehabich's past in her dreams. She knew his past, his story, so what else was there to see? Alice doubted that there was much else, but she still didn't want to risk having two dreams about the Vampire Hunter in one night, or rather, one day.

But her body and mind were screaming two different things; one wanted to sleep, while the other fought back. She struggled against the two for a while, then finally succumbed to defeat and drifted off. And much to her relief, she dreamt of normal things that time, and not of Vampires or Hunters.

_~O~_

Shun yawned as he woke from his slumber. When he sat upright in the bed, he brought the heel of his hand up to his eye and rubbed away the last of the sleep that lingered in them. He had slept rather well that day, except for the one time when Alice had woken him after her dream, but other than that, he felt fairly well-rested for the first time in weeks. Shun began to wonder if it had anything to do with Alice drinking his blood earlier.

She hadn't taken too much, only enough to make him a bit light-headed and weak-feeling, but it might have been enough to tire him out enough to fall into a heavy sleep. Shun then glanced down to the spot on the bed beside him where Alice had been sleeping, and found that it was empty.

He began to think that she might have already gotten up, but caught something out of the corner of his eye and found her sleeping on the sofa across the room. He raised a brow in confusion. Why had she moved over there? He shrugged it off, figuring that maybe he had accidentally kicked her or something in his sleep.

Shun climbed out of the bed, grabbing the blanket off as he did, and strode across the room over to where Alice slept on the sofa. He draped the blanket over her. She didn't even stir. Shun felt relieved that she was able to sleep soundly, seeing as how troubled she had been earlier; he had been somewhat worried that her troubled mind wouldn't allow her to get a decent rest.

So, to Shun, this was a good sign, a sign that suggested to him that maybe she was finally coming to terms with being a Vampire now. Then again, as he had come to know in the past month or so, looks could be deceiving. Shun didn't want to think like that, though.

He wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. He left her side and walked out of the room, where he proceeded to make his way back to his own living quarters. When he got back to his room, he went straight to his dresser and pulled out a fresh set of clothes to wear, which consisted of a pair of jeans and a black shirt; black clothing was common-place in the enclave.

Shun quickly changed into the new clothes, taking the old ones with him into the bathroom and placing them in the hamper there. He then turned around and looked at his reflection in the mirror behind him. His hair was messed up enough that it needed to be fixed, so he combed his fingers through the short, black locks until everything fell back into place, seeing as he still hadn't gotten hold of a comb or brush yet.

His eyes then fell on the two, faint puncture wounds on his neck. They had started to fade as they healed up, leaving behind only two, dark spots that could have been mistaken for a trick of shadows. Shun brought his fingers up and touched the spot on his neck. It had been weird, having his blood drained. It wasn't like it had hurt anything; in fact, after Alice had bit him, he hadn't felt much at all.

But through the numbness, he had still been able to feel his blood leaving his body as she drank, a sensation that could only be described as weird. Shun hadn't minded it, though. Alice had needed blood at the time, seeing as she had been falling into Bloodlust. It had been just like the first time he had taken blood from her; he had been in the same situation.

So, he had been more than obliged to return the favor for her in her time of need. But just how long could they really go on like that, with him taking blood from her and vice versa, considering the that, due to the Imprint, she might can only have his blood like he could only have hers?

It was still an uncertain fact at this point whether or not she could stomach blood that wasn't his, and they hadn't tested it out last night when she had been falling into Bloodlust because there hadn't been anytime. In a way, Shun could now understand why Vampires were unable to have an Imprint with another Vampire, other than it being supposedly impossible; it was nothing but a never-ending cycle of give and take.

But there was nothing they could do about it now, unless one of them were to die, and Shun didn't even want to start thinking about that. He removed his hand from the puncture wounds on his neck and exited the bathroom. From his room, he could already hear the enclave starting to come to life for another night. He heard the chatter of Clan members as they walked past his room.

Shun sighed and left out of his room. He figured that Sinclair would probably address the Clan about what Gillfrey had informed them of last night, that Zoran had been the one to take over the Society. So, Shun started towards the main room to wait and see if his hunch would be right. As he walked, he passed by a handful of other Clan members that were leaving out of their own rooms.

He gave them a supple nod as a greeting, which they usually returned, and continued on his way. Shun still felt strange at just how quickly he had assimilated into the daily-life of the enclave, when not a month ago everything about it terrified him and felt so unreal. Now, he could hardly even remember how his daily routine had gone when he had been human, other than going out early in the morning and training with his grandfather.

Shun stopped dead in his tracks; his grandfather hadn't even crossed his mind since the battle with Alexander. A heavy knot formed in Shun's stomach, a knot that made him sick; not just physically sick, but also mentally. The weight of his grandfather's death was still heavy on him, he realized. Shun shut his eyes tightly and tried his best to push away as much of the memories from that day as he possibly could.

He tried to push away the images of the all of the blood that had been spilt by his hands, the smell and taste of the blood that still seemed to follow him wherever he went. Shun wished he hadn't thought back to that day, wished that he had continued to remain occupied with other problems, like Gillfrey or Zoran's betrayal. But now that the memory of what he had done to his grandfather was fresh on his mind, Shun knew it wasn't about to go away anytime soon.

He leaned against the wall as a way to steady himself, and ran a trembling hand through his hair. His fingers caught on several knots that he had missed earlier when he fixed his hair. He wanted nothing more than to forget the horrible sin he committed, to forget his grandfather's blood that had been on his hands when he finally came to his senses as the drugs and Bloodlust wore off.

Shun shook his head. It wasn't like he had meant to kill his own grandfather, but he had had no control. His body and mind had been ravaged by Alexander's drug and Bloodlust, a deadly combination that he never wished to experience ever again. But, regardless of whether or not Shun could have stopped himself, the old man's death had been his fault because of the choices the raven-haired teen had made.

If he had never started using the blood mixtures, he might have had a chance at fighting against his Bloodlust, which would have ultimately stopped him from killing his grandfather, if he had been successful in doing so. Shun rubbed the sides of his arms, suddenly overcome with a chill as more of the mental images resurfaced, images that had been floated around in the back of his mind, waiting for something to trigger the memories so they could come forward again.

He knew that those images would always be there, would always reemerge and remind him of what he had done. Shun pushed himself off the wall and tried his best to recompose himself before he went into a full-on breakdown.

He took in several, deep breaths to calm his trembling nerves, but relaxing his mind was another story. There was nothing he could do on his own to distract himself from the images that danced around in his head; the only thing he could do was wait for something to come along and distract him for the time-being, just as the trouble with Gillfrey and Alice had done the past couple of days.

Shun would need constant distractions like these, or else his mind would wander and he would start to remember, and when that happened, the pain would come back and torment him. He took in another shaky breath and started walking down the hallways again. But instead of heading towards the main room like he had previously been doing, Shun was going in the opposite direction, and for good reason too.

He figured that walking around would help clear his mind and relax him enough to the point that he would be able to pull himself back together. Shun walked for a good distance down the hallway before he finally encountered a passerby. He was about to nod his usual, cordial greeting, a sign of respect to a fellow Clan member, when he realized who it was and stopped himself. It was Gillfrey.

The white-haired Vampire had on the same clothes as he did yesterday; a long white military-like uniform that had the golden ropes on the shoulders. He also wore the same smug expression. The Count narrowed his lilac-colored eyes at Shun and said, "Ah, it's you, the one that was in the study yesterday that defended that Gehabich girl."

Gillfrey's voice was laced with malice. Shun nodded, even though there was no need for him to respond to the obvious. "That would be me," he said shortly. Gillfrey's lips turned upward into a sly grin that reminded Shun of a fox. "You know," the Count said, "Next to her, you might be the second biggest eye sore to me that I've seen so far. Not only have you created an Imprint with a Vampire, something that I don't believe has ever been accomplished before, but you also stand up for that creature."

Shun narrowed his eyes at Gillfrey; the Count certainly had picked a bad time to be saying such words. The raven-haired teen took a step closer to Gillfrey, never once allowing his gaze to waver, and said, "I suggest you watch what you say here. There might be some Clan members that don't take too kindly to your words, me included. If I hadn't been more concerned about Alice yesterday, I would have fought back against you, but sadly my priorities were elsewhere."

Gillfrey's wry grin turned down to a scowl. "If you think that, because the blood that Turned you is Sinclair's, you're strong enough to take me on, then you are sadly mistaken. I am the Count, the strongest Vampire in the world. Only in your dreams could you defeat me," Gillfrey hissed.

The air around the two of them suddenly grew icy cold, and Shun realized that the Count was using his powers. He took a step back, readying himself in case Gillfrey did decide to attack. But as quickly as they air turned cold, it returned back to its normal temperature.

The Count wrinkled his nose up, as if he had seen something disgusting, and said, "I still can't believe that Sinclair wasted his blood on the likes of somebody like you….You and that girl both have blood in your veins that neither of you deserve." Gillfrey walked around Shun and added, "Now, if we're done with our little discussion, I'm off to go and check on my injured guard."

The Count walked off down the hall, eventually vanishing from sight when he was far enough off. Shun continued to stand there, rooted in place. All of his previous memories about his grandfather were now replaced with a hatred towards the Count. Their conversation had been enough to distract Shun away from the painful memories, but now, rather than feeling weighed down with guilt and sadness, Shun felt something that could be even more detrimental; anger and rage.

* * *

_Chapter title based off the song A Dangerous Mind by Within Temptation. _Oh, thank the heavens I don't have school tomorrow. I needed a day off, like, seriously. I haven't been in school a full month yet and I'm about to die. Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	14. Heavy Burdens

_~O~_

Loran had had a restless night, and for good reason too. His mind ran rampant with Gillfrey's words, words that spoke of his own brother committing horrible deeds. Was it really possible that Zoran did all those things? Maybe Gillfrey was wrong and it was somebody else that did all these things.

Loran could keep telling himself this all he wanted, but something deep down within him told him that Gillfrey was right, that it was his brother that had killed their parents and the members of the Society. He just didn't want to admit it. Loran wanted to keep his image of Zoran as the one from before, when his brother hid in the shadows and was slow to trust others; the brother that Loran had vowed to make a better, safer world for.

But as Loran recently found out, Zoran had never wanted his help. If anything, his brother had despised Loran for protecting him and such. The gray-haired Vampire sat upright in his bed and ran a hand through his hair, which was slightly damp with sweat.

He needed to get his mind on something else before he worried himself to death. He was sure that there would be somebody in the enclave that could use his help with something. Loran clambered out of his bed and strode over to the dresser against the wall. He started to open the top drawer, but stopped when his eyes fell on the old picture that rested on top of the dresser.

It was the one of him, Zoran, and their mother and father from all those years ago. Loran picked the photograph up and stared at the faces of his mother and father, then down to Zoran's listless gaze that stared back at him; Loran still couldn't believe that his brother had killed their parents.

He shook his head and glanced back up to the faces of his mother and father. Loran wasn't going to lie; they really hadn't been the best parents in the world. Not only did they abuse one of their children, but they also made it rather clear that they favored the other. Everything about their priorities had disgusted Loran, but they were still his parents, the ones who had given him life.

And no matter what kind of horrible things they may have done, they still held a special place in his heart. Now, that special place felt hollow with their deaths. Loran bit down on his lower lip and set the photo back on top of the dresser, face-down so he didn't have to have the faces of his past staring back at him anymore.

He then opened the drawer, as he had previously been doing, and took out the first shirt that his hands touched, a dark blue one, which he quickly changed into. Loran, still needing something to distract his ravaged mind, hurried out of his room and started towards the rooms that were used as the infirmary to check on the injured Vampire that Gillfrey had brought with him.

As he walked that way, Loran recalled how the infirmary had been overflowing after the battle with Alexander. They hadn't had enough rooms to accommodate all of the injured, so many were either placed on make-shift beds on the floor, or were treated within the confines of their own rooms. The gray-haired Vampire shuddered as he remembered all of the injured that were suddenly left in his care that day.

He had nearly been run ragged from going back and forth from treating the severely injured, to those with less minor wounds who still needed to be checked for developing signs of Blight. Of course, a good number of those who were gravely injured had died, putting a decent-sized dent in the Clan's numbers, and they had also lost a good many to Blight infections as well. But there was nothing that Loran could have done about it.

He had tried his best and saved as many lives as he could. Perhaps if he had had more help, more would have survived. Sadly, he didn't and had had to work alone, which had been too much placed on his shoulders. He sighed heavily, wanting to forget those memories as well, but he knew they would be easier to forget than the knowledge of his brother's betrayal.

Loran, without realizing, reached the room that housed one of their most recent guests. He stepped inside and was surprised to find Count Gillfrey standing in the room. The Count glanced up at Loran and said, "Ah, perfect timing. I just got here to check in on my guard. Please, if you wouldn't mind informing me about Carson's current condition?"

Loran didn't take his eyes from the Count until he reached Carson's bedside; the gray-haired Vampire didn't trust Gillfrey. Not after what all went down in Sinclair's study. Loran finally took his gaze away and looked down to Carson. When the young Vampire had been brought to the infirmary, he had been on the verge of death. And while Loran had been treating Carson's injuries, he had been wondering what could have done so much damage.

Only later was it that Gillfrey revealed that it had been an attack from Zoran that had nearly killed the young Vampire. Loran shuddered. This was, yet, another thing he hadn't known about his brother until now; that Zoran had powers. Loran figured that his brother must have been honing his powers all these years while hiding in the shadows and roaming around the enclave during the day.

Out of sight, out of mind, as the old saying went. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the bad thoughts that had invaded his brain. "Ahem," the Count said as he cleared his throat. Loran remembered that Gillfrey had asked him a question. "S-Sorry….My mind hasn't been together lately," he explained.

But Loran knew that Gillfrey was well aware as to why his mind wasn't together; it was because of the news of his brother. The Count nodded and said, "Your current mental status is of none of my concern right now. What is my concern, however, is the current condition of my guard."

Loran nodded, trying his best to ignore the arrogance that seemed the radiate from Gillfrey. "Let me just check on his wounds real quick and I can give you an answer," he told the Count, who appeared as if he could care less. Loran narrowed his eyes and turned his attention to Carson, who was unconscious. Carefully, Loran rolled the young Vampire on his side, revealing the bandages that had been placed over the wounds upon his arrival.

"Could you maybe give me a hand while I remove these bandages?" Loran asked the Count. Gillfrey shrugged his shoulders and placed a hand on Carson's shoulder to keep him from rolling back while the gray-haired Vampire worked. Loran began to remove the bandages. Underneath, they were sticky with medicine that had been slathered on the wounds to keep infection at bay.

But for the most part, Carson's injuries were healing up rather nicely. The skin on his back, which had been seared and charred from the heat of the attack, was now only the faintest color of pink. Loran knew there would be some scarring left behind, but there was nothing that could be done about that. "He seems to be healing up nicely. I think your guard will be fully-recovered in no time," Loran said and began to redress the wounds.

When he was done, he let Gillfrey know that he could roll Carson back over. The Count nodded and did just that. He then turned and said to Loran, "Thank you for taking care of my guard's injuries. He is a valuable asset to me, one that I cannot afford to lose. You will be rewarded generously for your services." Loran blinked in surprise, then shook his head. "No, it's alright. You don't have to do that, really."

Gillfrey seemed a bit surprised by Loran's decline of his offer, but his surprise quickly wore off, and the Count shrugged his shoulders. "Very well, then," he said and started walking off. But right as he reached the door, Loran stopped him. "Wait."

The Count glanced over his shoulder at the gray-haired Vampire and said, "Yes? What is it?" Loran cast his eyes down to the floor in front of him and asked, "My brother…..What will happen to him when…..When all of this is sorted out?" A silence hung in the air for a brief moment before Gillfrey answered with, "Odds are he will receive a trial, but in the end, he will more than likely be executed."

Loran tensed up upon hearing the last words. He figured that would be his brother's outcome, but he hadn't want to think about it. "There's no chance he would be locked away for the rest of his life?" Loran asked nervously.

Gillfrey shook his head and told him, "Your brother not only killed Lord Larousse and Lady Zaria and drained them of their blood, but he also killed members of the Society, both of which are two of the highest crimes that can possibly be committed. There is no chance for him to be locked away in a Societal prison."

Loran held back the tears he felt that were stinging at his eyes and nodded. "I see," he told the Count, "Thank you for your honesty." Gillfrey lingered for a moment longer, then, before he left the room, said, "Lord Larousse always had high hopes for you, that you'd become a good addition to the Society. I think he was right. It's just a shame that Sinclair got to you first."

With that, the Count left from Carson's infirmary room, leaving Loran standing there by himself. The moment he was alone, Loran let the tears spill from his eyes.

_~O~_

Alice woke with a start. She sat upright, and when she did, a blanket, which she hadn't remembered covering herself up with, fell off of her and landed on the floor. She looked around the room, trying to figure out what had woken up, but found that she was all alone; even the bed, which Shun had been asleep in, was empty.

Alice calmed down a bit, but was still on edge. She could have sworn if felt as if something had landed on top of her, but no matter how hard she looked around her, she couldn't find a single thing that might have done it. At first, she thought it might have been the blanket, which, at this point, she figured out Shun had probably placed it on her while she had been asleep.

But there was no way it would have felt like the weight that landed on her. She shook her head and suddenly felt a wave of anger bubble up inside her for no reason. She didn't know what was going on. Why was she suddenly feeling all of these things? A thought then crossed her mind.

The last time she had felt emotions and things that weren't hers, was when she let Shun take her blood a couple days back. Alice had felt all of the emotions that Shun was feeling at that very point in time; self-loathing, regret, etc. She shook her head, realizing this had to somehow be the same thing.

But what could have caused such a random shift in Shun's emotions to have them change from a heavy weight in the heart, to rage? Alice felt her worry build. Something had happened. Worry and concern eating her alive, Alice climbed off the sofa she had fallen asleep on and left out of the room in search of Shun.

* * *

Eh, that last part was rather just a filler part for this chapter. -shrugs- I was dealing with a bit of writer's block, but, as usual, I fight through it. Sometimes it turns out good, sometimes it doesn't. Eh, what else can ya ask for? But I'm excited cause I get to leave and drive (on my own) for the first time and go see City of Bones with my friend! Yay! The movie looks really good (especially the guy they got to play Magnus Bane, oh yes), and I know it's not all like the book, but I'm sure I'll still enjoy it. Well, read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	15. Troubling Doubts

_~O~_

Alice walked through the enclave's hallways, peering down each pathway that she came across to see if she could find Shun. The enclave was such a massive place, and she hardly knew where anything was at, other than her and Shun's rooms, that is. She bit down on her lower lips as she walked past what felt like the hundredth hallway; she didn't have the slightest idea as to where Shun would be in such a place.

It wasn't like back at Marucho's house, where everyone knew his usually hiding places and could find him within minutes. Sometimes, Alice thought he would let them find him, rather than hide somewhere else or just leave the mansion to avoid being bothered.

She continued on her search for him, but after several more minutes of walking and finding no signs, and possibly being lost somewhere in the enclave, Alice started to feel her confidence falter a bit; she would never find him on her own, not without help.

She stopped walking and stood there for a moment, trying to regain her focus and think of her next move. As she stood there, she saw somebody heading her way out of the corner of her eye. When Alice looked up, she saw it was Alucard. His strikingly purple eyes were heavy with sleep, but other than that, he looked as alert as ever. A thought crossed Alice's mind and she asked, "Hey, Alucard, you wouldn't happen to know where Shun is, would you?"

The second-in-command stopped in front of her and thought for a moment. He finally told her, "I think I saw him heading towards the Training Room, but there's no guarantee that's where he was going, but you are more than welcome to check." He then started to give her direction to where the Training Room was, which was, thankfully, close to her current location.

Alice thanked Alucard and started off towards the Training Room. It kind of made sense, when Alice thought about it, that Shun would be in such a room. And if she had known that they had a Training Room, it probably would have been the first place she checked. Carefully following Alucard's directions, Alice finally came across the room. It had a heavy steel door, and little sign bolted onto it that read _Training Room. _

She reached out and took the doorknob in her hand, which creaked as she pushed down and opened the door. Inside, she found herself faced with walls lined with every kind of weapon imaginable, but the majority of them appeared to be things with blades or sharpened edges. Perhaps that was the best way to kill another Vampire; with blades. Alice's eyes scanned across the room, taking in every square inch of weapon-covered wall.

She was then snapped back to focus by the sounds of grunting and whispered curses. Alice brought her gaze from the walls to the center of the room, just in time for her to see Shun as he viciously cut into the foam body of a dummy with a blade. He yanked the knife out of the fake assailant and attacked again, this time going for the dummy's throat.

The force of the blow was enough to knock the sparring target down to the ground. Shun took several steps back and wiped sweat from his brow. His shoulders moved up and down with his heavy breathing, and his eyes were filled with ferocity, the likes of which Alice didn't think she had ever seen before. She cautiously stepped further into the room and said sheepishly, "Shun?"

He turned around, and when he saw her, he quickly sheathed the knife into its scabbard. "Hey," he said as he sat the blade down on the ground beside his feet, "What are you doing here?" Alice didn't want to admit that she had come looking for him because she had felt a sudden influx of emotions, emotion of which could have only been his; it just sounded too crazy.

Then again, everything that had happened the past couple of days had been crazy. "I…I was, uh, just looking for you. You weren't in the room when I woke up, and with Gillfrey running around in the enclave, I didn't feel too comfortable being on my own," she half-lied. The last part was true; she didn't want to face Gillfrey again for some time.

Her encounter with him in Sinclair's study had been enough for her. Not only had he called her out and humiliated her, but he had also thrown her to the ground like a piece of trash; her wrist still ached a bit from where she had caught herself before landing on the ground. Shun now stood in front of her, his eyes a bit softer than they were earlier, but they still held a bit of fury behind them.

He told her, "I didn't even think about that. I should have known better than to leave you alone with that creep lurking about. Sorry." Alice noticed that his eyes flashed with anger when he mentioned Gillfrey. "It's alright," she told him. Alice then glanced down at the sparring dummy that lay on the floor. Bits and pieces of foam were scattered about around it.

"Is everything alright with you, though? I came in earlier when you were, uh, training, and you appeared to be really…Focused," she told him. She didn't want to tell him that he had looked enraged and furious, so she had used focused, for lack of better words. Shun glanced down at the shredded sparring dummy and said, "Yeah, about that. I was just….Letting out some frustration is all. Don't worry about it."

Alice cast her gaze down to the ground and said, "Alright, then." Even though she had no proof, Alice felt that these 'frustrations' that Shun was talking about had something to do with her. What if he wasn't taking the news about her being a Vampire as well as he said he was?

What if he felt that she was now some kind of dead weight for him, some kind of hindrance? What if the whole thing about her being Arthur Gehabich's descendent was causing him trouble? Alice could feel the edges of her eyes stinging with tears that threatened to spill over. She did her best to hold them back, though; she didn't want Shun to see her so weak and vulnerable.

Apparently, she wasn't doing a good enough job because he asked her, "Alice? Are you alright?" He reached out to place his hand on her shoulder, but she withdrew back before he made contact. She then looked up and plastered a smile on her face. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said, the cheerfulness in her voice betraying how she really felt, "Just thinking about something."

Shun's expression told Alice that he didn't fully believe her, and she knew she had to change the conversation before she slipped up and spoke her thoughts.

"You know, I realized earlier that I haven't spoken to Dan or any of the others since I was brought here. They're probably worrying themselves to death about me, so I should probably get in touch with them in the next couple of days to let them know I'm okay. You should probably go with me too, so that way they'll know you're alive as well."

Alice realized she was babbling on now, but it was either that or breakdown and let Shun know of her irrational worries; she didn't want to place her burden on his shoulders, especially when he already had enough on his plate.

He sighed and said, "Yeah, that'd probably be a good idea. It's been a while since they've heard from me, and since you pretty much vanished from them that night of our fight with Alexander, I'm sure they are worrying themselves sick. We'll go and get in touch with them sometime this week, how about that?"

Alice smiled sadly and nodded. She still didn't know what she would tell the others when she saw them. She knew they would demand and explanation as to where she had been the past couple of days, but it wasn't like she could tell them that she had been with the company of a couple hundred of Vampires; they wouldn't believe her. Alice would have to come up with a story to tell her friends before she and Shun went to go pay them a visit.

_Hopefully I can come up with something before then. If not, then I just don't know what I'll tell them. _Alice hadn't even realized that she had cast her gaze back to the ground until Shun placed his hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up to meet his gaze.

His eyes held a dead seriousness as he told her, "Alice, if something is bothering you, you can tell me. I can tell when you're troubled, I've always been able to tell, but if you don't let me know what's wrong, then there's nothing I can do or say to try and help you. You've got to keep in mind that, just like you were there for me when I was still dealing with all of this, I'm going to be there for you to help you get through it as well. It's the least I can do for you after all you've done for me."

Alice felt her eyes sting with oncoming tears, and her throat tightened as a sob threatened to escape, but she held both of those things back; she didn't want Shun to see her cry anymore. She had shed enough tears already. So, Alice quickly recomposed herself and nodded, not trusting her voice to be steady enough to speak yet.

But even though Shun's words sounded real and true, constant doubt had infiltrated Alice's thoughts, and she couldn't help but wonder if he really meant what he said, or if he was just saying it out of pity because now she was another problem to him. Alice wondered how long she would think these kinds of things, how long she would doubt whether or not Shun really cared about her, or if guilt was just eating at him.

She felt like she should know better and have more faith in Shun, but with all of the recent events, and all of the things she thought she knew being lies, like her being a human, she didn't know what to believe anymore. They stood in silence for a moment before somebody else entered the Training Room.

It was a young Vampire, probably the youngest she had seen thus far. "Sinclair is calling a meeting in the main room concerning the news he has received from Count Gillfrey," the young Vampire said and walked off, more than likely to continue spreading his message. Alice turned to Shun and asked him, "Should we go and attend Sinclair's meeting as well, seeing as we already know the details about it?"

Shun narrowed his eyes as he thought it over. "No," he said gruffly, "I really don't feel like hearing that all over again. It was bad enough once, but twice is just too much. Besides, Gillfrey will probably be in attendance, and quite frankly, I don't feel like seeing his face right now, and I'm sure you don't either." Alice wasn't going to lie about that; Gillfrey really was the last person on the face of the Earth that she wanted to see right now.

The Count hadn't exactly been friendly the first time they met, and she doubted he would be any nicer the second time. "What do we do, then?" Alice asked, "Everyone will probably be at Sinclair's meeting." Shun closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "I don't know about you, but I, for one, could really use some fresh air. I've been cooped up in this place for too many days, and it's starting to get to me," he said briskly.

Shun the reopened his eyes and looked over at Alice. "You're more than welcome to come with me, if you'd like," he told her. Alice thought about her previous escapade outside, but it had been daylight at the time, which didn't allow her to step out into the sun unless she had something covering her exposed skin.

Now, it was late at night, the only thing casting any light being the moon, considering it was even out at the time. She could go outside, stretch her legs and fill her lungs with cool, night air. The thought of that chased away some of heavy weight that had formed in her chest, and brought a slight smile to her face.

"That sounds really nice. I could use some fresh air and change of scenery too," she told him. Shun nodded and said, "Well, then we better get going before too many people crowd into the main room and block the door out of the enclave."

Alice nodded and followed after Shun as he began to leave the Training Room, staying close to him as to not get separated and lost in the maze-like hallways of the enclave.

* * *

Sorry for not uploading a lot this week. I had some things going on after school, and lost track of time while hanging around some friends, and then there was also the small matter of I was experiencing a bad writer's block and lacking some motivation to write, but I think I'm back in the groove now. I'm glad I got this chapter done when I did though, because I'm about to go to the local Celtic fest with some friends like I do every year. So, it's a win-win for me. Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	16. Don't Let Go

_~O~_

They got through the main room and out of the enclave before it was too crowded to reach the door. Before they had left, though, Alice had taken note of some of the facial expressions of the Vampires that had gathered in the main room to wait for Sinclair's announcement.

They all were either blank or confused, but she knew they wouldn't be like that much longer. Soon, they would turn from confused to shocked or appalled. Alice shook her head, happy that she wouldn't have to relive hearing the same news over again. Despite the fact that she didn't really know Zoran, the Vampire that had taken over the Society, she had heard enough about him from his brother, Loran.

And from what Loran had told her, Zoran wasn't even capable of hurting a fly. But looks were deceiving, as Alice had come to find out in the past couple of days; just because she had looked human all these years, didn't mean she was. She quickly shook those thoughts away before they had a chance to get to her. The best thing for Alice to do was to focus on what was going on in front of her.

And right then, what was going on in front of her, was Shun leading her away from the enclave and out into the night. Back in the Training Room, after hearing the announcement about Sinclair's meeting, they had both come to an agreement to leave out of the enclave, seeing as neither one of them wanted to hear the same bad news twice, or run the chance of seeing Count Gillfrey.

So, it was either hide in the enclave, or leave, and as Shun had previous stated, he was tired of being cooped up in the place. Now, here they were, walking through the forested area that surrounded the enclave. Alice had never seen the forest until earlier that day, when she had stepped outside for only a brief moment. But thanks to the sun, she hadn't been able to see just how far the trees expanded.

When she thought about it, the location of the enclave was really a perfect one. It was hidden away deep within the woods, away from where any human might find it unless they were lost in the forest and happened upon it. Alice glanced up and could see bits and pieces of the night sky through the leaves of the branches that hung overhead.

It was then that Alice realized just how well she could see in the dark. Everything was as clear as if it were illuminated by light, but she could still tell that it was pitch black. It was weird, but interesting at the same time. She recalled awhile back that Shun mentioned something about his senses being enhanced since he was Turned. Now, she realized just how much hers had been enhanced.

Through the pitch black of the night, she could make out the slightest details in things, like the veins in leaves, or a sleeping bird perched up in a branch, things that humans wouldn't have noticed have noticed in the daytime, much less at night. She began to wonder what other things in the world around her she had been missing out on, thanks to her old human senses.

Alice wanted to know. She closed her eyes and strained her ears, which were suddenly filled in with sounds of the night that no mere human could hear; chirping of nocturnal insects, the fluttering of a bat's wings, the gentle rocking of trees in the light breeze. It was a musical symphony, one that Alice hated knowing that she had been unable to hear all these years because of a seal on her Vampiric nature. She wanted to test something else out, and inhaled deeply. Her sense of smell was then overcome by the scents of the forest.

She picked up on the subtle smell of leaves, both alive and those that were turning with the coming change of seasons. There was also the earthy smell of the dirt beneath her feet, and somewhere farther off, the scent of delicate flowers. So many things she had never noticed before, so many things that she had been oblivious to because of the limitations a human had.

Now, that was not the case, and to be honest, Alice felt a tad bit overwhelmed by it all. But at the same time, she was in total awe. "Alice? Alice?" She snapped back to reality when she finally heard Shun calling her name. "Huh? What?" she asked, dumbfounded. It was almost like waking up from a dream. Although the surroundings around her were no longer as intensified, they were still there, lingering around her in the air, making their presence known after all these years of being blind to them.

"You stopped walking and were just standing there," Shun told her, "I called your name several times, but you didn't even respond. I was starting to worry a bit." Alice felt her face heat up a bit with embarrassment. "I-I'm sorry," she stuttered, "It looks like I just got a little distracted by these new senses of mine. You know, hearing, seeing, and smelling all these things that I never knew were here up until now. It's….It's almost like looking at a new world."

She felt stupid for saying the last part, but it was true; it was like looking at a new world, or like looking at it for the first time. Alice saw that Shun was grinning slightly. "You'll get used to it eventually, and when you do, you'll hardly even notice those kinds of things," he told her. Shun turned around and started walking again, and Alice quickly followed behind. _I don't know if I do want to get used to this, though. _

As strange as it sounded, Alice wanted to feel as if she were looking at the world through new eyes every time, to feel the same rush and amazement that she had just experienced a moment ago. As they walked, Alice snuck a glance over at Shun. He appeared to be a lot more relaxed now, unlike earlier when she had found him in the Training Room ripping apart a practice dummy with a knife.

_Good, _she thought to herself, _he needed a break from all of the craziness that's been going on. _Alice wasn't going to deny that she needed one too. The past couple of days for her had been nothing short of turbulent, primarily with more downs than ups. So, the relaxing sounds of the night and some time away from the insanity of the enclave were doing her some good.

Before Alice even realized it, they had cleared the forest. They were now in a very familiar place; the city park. Alice turned around and looked up at the direction they had come from. Never did it occur to her that the enclave was hidden deep within the forest that lined the park, and if she recalled correctly, that forest was protected by the government, meaning that Sinclair and his Clan were a lot safer from human interaction than she could have ever thought about.

Shun glanced over his shoulder at her and asked, "Do you want to sit down for a bit and rest?" Alice thought about his offer for a moment. Her feet did ache a bit from the walk. "It probably wouldn't hurt," she told him. Shun nodded and the two of them walked over to a nearby bench.

Alice sat down and could practically feel her feet sigh with relief; they ached a lot more than she realized. Shun sat down beside her, but he didn't look as relieved to be sitting as she felt, which didn't surprise Alice. She knew very well that it took more than just a walk to tire him out. "At least it's somewhat cool out tonight," he said suddenly. Alice hadn't even noticed the cool air; she had been too busy noticing everything else.

"Yeah," she replied, "it feels nice." A light breeze blew past them, encompassing them in the cool air that had become the focus of their current conversation. The breeze ended up causing Alice to shiver with a chill for a moment. "I'll be happy when it starts cooling down some more," Shun stated, "It was just too damn hot this year."

Alice wasn't going to disagree with him on that. She nodded and stared ahead as she watched the late night commuters drive by. A strange thought crossed her mind upon seeing these night-owl drivers; what if they were Vampires too? Perhaps that was why they were out so late, driving around the city. At this point, anything was possible.

Alice glanced up at the night sky overhead. It was a crystal clear night, and because of her enhanced vision, she could see thousands of more stars that were considered faint to the human eye. Now, it looked at if the sky was glazed over with millions and millions of diamonds, a sight that was enough to take Alice's breath away for a moment.

She then figured that if she never fully accepted being a Vampire, the one thing she would accept would be her enhanced senses. "So, you mentioned earlier that you were taking out some frustrations on that dummy," Alice blurted out before she even realized it. Shun glanced over at her and raised a brow. "Yeah, what about it?" he asked. Alice hadn't meant to mention, but it had just kind of happened.

_Too late to change the topic now. _She scratched the back of her neck nervously and told him, "Well, I know you told me not to worry about it, but it's just been bugging me. I guess I'm just curious to know what had you so bothered." _More like worried that it's something about me, _she silently added. Shun raised a curious-look at her, then sighed heavily.

"If you must know, it was because of Gillfrey. I ran into him earlier and some words were exchanged is all. It's nothing major to worry about," he told her. Alice felt a small sense of relief flood over her, but she wasn't completely convinced. She still was having her doubts about whether or not Shun had really come to terms with her being a Vampire.

Alice knew she should have had more faith in him, but seeing as her whole life had been a lie, she was now suspicious about things in front of her, no matter how black and white they appeared to be. "Let me guess, those words that were exchanged were about me, weren't they?" she asked, already knowing the correct answer. Shun sighed again, closed his eyes, and said, "Yes, you came up in the conversation several times, but like I said, please don't worry about it too much."

Alice turned and directly faced Shun, who appeared taken aback by her sudden action. "How can I not worry about it? It's obvious that Gillfrey can't stand the sight of me, and I'm pretty sure he'd be a lot happier if I didn't exist. That way I wouldn't be some eyesore to him or a disgrace to the damn Society," Alice said, her voice rising the more she got worked up.

She could feel her eyes stinging, but she held her tears back, refusing to let them spill in front of Shun. He placed his hand on her shoulder and said gently, "Hey, hey, calm down. Don't get yourself worked up too much by saying those things." She shook her head and snapped, "You know they're true! You know it's true! You know that Gillfrey would be happy if I dropped dead in front of him! I'd be one less nuisance for him, the same way that I would no longer be a burden on you!"

She clamped her hand over her mouth and turned away, refusing to meet Shun's gaze. The tears she had been trying so hard to hold back came flooding from her eyes like a broken dam. Alice couldn't believe she had said those words, the thoughts that she had been trying to keep to herself until she sorted through them enough to deal with them.

She felt just as Shun reached out to touch her shoulder, and she drew back and stood up from the bench, getting just out of his reach; she didn't want to face him. Her face burned from embarrassment and tears. "Is that what you think? That you're a burden to me?" he asked from behind. His voice was surprised, but still gentle. "Well," she said, trying to find the words she needed, "Yeah, kind of…"

Alice glanced over her shoulder and saw Shun out of the corner of her eye. He was shaking his head in disbelief. "Why? What reason do you have to think that?" he asked. Alice felt her face heat up even more; she wasn't ready to be put on the spot like this. "I, uh…..It just….It's complicated," she said, hoping he would drop it there, but knew better than that.

"Tell me. Trust me, I've got all night to sort out complicated," he said back to her. Alice sighed. She knew he wouldn't leave it at 'it's complicated.' She turned around and sat back down on the wooden bench, but still kept her gaze adverted from Shun. He was standing beside her now, his arms crossed over his chest in an impatient manner as he waited for her explanation.

Alice took a deep, trembling breath, and said, "Because of everything. The whole me suddenly being a Vampire after all this time thing, the Imprint, my family's past, all of it. I feel like since all of this came into the light, all it's done is cause you grief, especially from Gillfrey. That you're only putting up with all of it because of the Imprint or because of guilt." Silence hung between them for the longest of moments before Alice added in, "You must think I'm a horrible person for thinking and saying those things….I know I should know better, but I just can't help it….."

Her eyes were stained with tears, new and old. She used he palm of her hand to wipe some of the wet stains away, knowing good and well that her eyes would be wet with tears again. Shun sat back down beside her on the bench.

Alice braced herself for whatever his reaction would be. "I thought we've been over something like this before," he said with an exasperated sigh, "I don't think those things, Alice. You are in no way, shape, or form a burden on me. And I'm not putting up with all of this because of the Imprint, guilt, or whatever else you may think. I'm putting up with it because I want to. If I didn't want anything to do with this, I would opt out of it and only come around whenever I needed blood, and I'm not about to do that."

He paused for a moment, as if collecting his thoughts, and continued on with his lecture. "Alice, I _know _that this has all been difficult for you to deal with, and I don't blame you for having doubts about things now, because everything you thought you knew feels like a lie, or like you can't trust what you see. But you have to believe me when I tell you that you are not a burden to me, that I am not standing by you because of guilt or some other factor, that I am standing by you because I want to."

Alice felt the lump in her throat come back, and a sob escaped her. She felt foolish for thinking these thoughts, but with a life that had suddenly been turned upside down, she couldn't help but think such things. "I'm sorry," she said weakly. Between the walk from the enclave and the whole conversation she had just had with Shun, Alice was physically and emotionally drained.

Shun sighed and told her, "It's alright, I'm not mad at you for something that you couldn't help." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and brought her closer to him. The embrace was a warm and comforting one, one that had become familiar, safe. Alice closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder, allowing her battered mind to relax for a moment.

"I'm still sorry, though," she said, her voice slightly muffled from being in the crook of his neck, "I let my thoughts get carried away, and because of that, I could have lost the only person that is even bothering to help me." Shun chuckled, which caused Alice to look up at him as if he had finally lost it. "What's so funny?" she asked with narrowed eyes.

He glanced down at her and said with a grin, "It's going to take a lot more than that to get rid of me." Alice felt her face heat up slightly at his comment. "You sound really sure of yourself," she said sardonically. His grin widen almost into a smile when he said, "As sure as I'll ever be." Alice smiled at his remark and found that the slight humor was doing her some good to lighten her mood, which was just what she needed at the moment.

She then felt the embrace he had on her tighten a bit. "Shun?" she asked, wondering if something was wrong. His face was near hers, close enough that she could feel him breathing.

"Just promise not to think those things again, though. The last thing either one of us can afford is for doubts to push the other away, especially when we've gotten to a point where one literally cannot live without the other," he whispered, but being that he was so close to her ear, Alice heard him loud and clear.

She shivered slightly at the closeness, and also from the pleading tone in his voice. Alice knew all too well just how important she was to Shun; she had been the one that held him together in his time of need. _The same way he's trying to hold me together, _she thought to herself. Alice turned and met Shun's gaze. She told him, "I promise." He leaned in, only mere inches from her face now.

Alice could feel her heart pounding in her ears, and she wondered if Shun could hear it, seeing as how close he was to her. Next thing she knew, Shun closed the distance between them, pressing his lips against hers. Alice felt her heart jump up into her throat, but she didn't retreat.

She kissed him back, acting on what she had wanted for such a long time. The worries that had been weighing on Alice's mind, suddenly melted away, lost in oblivion for this short moment in time. Their kiss was gentle, but hungry at the same time, if such a thing was possible.

Shun pulled her closer to him, which she didn't think was possible at this point, and now, Alice could pick up on the faintest smell of spice; she wasn't sure if it was some kind of cologne on him, or if it was just her mind imagining things. When they finally broke their kiss, Shun rested his forehead on hers.

They both were breathing heavily, breathless, as if they had been underwater for several seconds and had just come up for air; in a way, they kind of had. Alice could already feel that her faced was flushed. "You think Sinclair is done with his meeting?" she asked with a slight smile.

Shun chuckled and responded to her question with a question. "Does it really matter?" he asked. Alice smiled and said back, "I guess not." He chuckled again and lightly kissed her forehead.

* * *

_Chapter title based off the song Don't Let Go by Bryan Adams. _This chapter took me a while to write, and seeing as a lot of people have been begging for them to kiss, there ya go. But you all need to understand that to make a story good, you can't just rush into a kissing scene. I know this is a popular couple, and there is fan-service that is expected (for lack of better terms), but you also have to remember that I have standards to uphold. I don't want to go and rush into a kissing scene. If I do one, I want it to be the best it can possibly be, and that involves timing. And right now, this story is still in its infancy (most of the chapters before this were stating things and setting up the plot). Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so please do read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	17. Different Ends Of The Spectrum

_~O~_

Sinclair had received the reaction he half-expected upon delivering his news to the members of his Clan; shock, disbelief, and so forth. The main room, which he had made his announcement in, was now filled with chatter as Vampires discussed the news they had just heard.

Sinclair could hear bits and pieces of their conversations. Many were asking others what they thought about this revelation, while others were asking to make sure they heard right, that they had heard Sinclair say that it was Zoran that took down the Society.

One voice shouted over all of the chatter, though. "How can we be sure that Gillfrey isn't lying to us?!" somebody shouted over the crowd. Their face was obscured from Sinclair's view, so he had no way of identifying who the owner of the question. Nonetheless, the Vampire Lord responded. "As difficult as this is to believe, I trust Count Gillfrey one hundred percent in this matter. He has nothing to gain by lying to me," Sinclair stated firmly, hoping that those last words would be enough to quell anymore growing doubt. It was understandable though. Sinclair, for many years, had preached to his Clan members how twisted and untrustworthy the Society was.

Now, he felt somewhat like a hypocrite in taking the word of the highest member of the Society possible; the Count himself. But Sinclair knew more than he was letting out. He had known Gillfrey for quite some time, and there was absolutely nothing for the Count to gain out of this if it were a lie or trap, neither of which would have called for such an elaborate, detailed story.

"But he's Society! We can't trust him! You've said so yourself, Sir! The Society can't be trusted!" another voice shouted across the room. Many of the Clan members nodded their heads in agreement. Sinclair sighed heavily and could already feel himself getting a headache; it was going to be a long night. The Vampire Lord was about to open his mouth to speak when Alucard stepped in.

"Don't any of you have any faith in Sinclair? If he says we are to trust Count Gillfrey, then we are to trust him without question. And although many of us may have our differences with the Society, it is quite obvious that something terrible has happened, which requires us to push aside those differences and work together," the second-in-command addressed to the crowd, which had fallen silent at his words. Sinclair was surprised by Alucard's assertiveness as well; normally his second-in-command stood out of sight, keeping his words to himself.

"Alucard is right," Sinclair said, breaking the silence that had infiltrated the room, "A time of tribulation is upon us, and whether you are with the Society or against us, it no long matters, for a storm is coming our way, I assure you. And with the storm, blood will follow. It will not discriminate, it will not care for your beliefs or where you came from. This storm will cut every last one us down if we do not stand together during it. Have I made myself clear?"

Slowly, one-by-one, heads began to nod, signaling that they understood the Vampire Lord and accepted his words as truth. Sinclair, satisfied with seeing that everyone was now on the same page, turned to face Alucard, who stood beside him. "Thank you, I couldn't have said it better myself," the Vampire Lord said with a smile. He truly was grateful that Alucard had spoken when he did.

The second-in-command grinned a bit and said, "It's no problem, Sir. I'm just doing my job." Sinclair patted Alucard's shoulder. "If there is one thing I am sure about in the future, it's that whenever I step down from command, for whatever reason, this Clan will be safe in your hands," Sinclair said quietly to his second-in-command in order to make sure that no wandering ears heard their conversation.

Alucard simply nodded in response. With one last pat on the shoulder, Sinclair told Alucard, "Now that the Clan has been informed on what's going on, I think I deserve a drink. If you need me, I shall be in my study." The Vampire Lord then slunk out of the main room, almost unnoticed by the eyes of his underlings. Now, the chattering in the main room was nothing but faint noise in the background, barely even audible.

The Vampire Lord released a heavy sigh; he was relieved to have said what needed to be said. As much as he wanted to keep the crucial information about Zoran's betrayal under wraps, he knew that doing such a thing would be wrong, even impossible. The way Gillfrey spoke about the manner in which Zoran took over the Society had raised an alarm for Sinclair.

Something about it didn't make sense, which told the Vampire Lord that Zoran wasn't going to stop with the crumbling of the Society. No, there was something much, much bigger in store for them, he was sure of it. Although, he didn't have the slightest clue as to what it might be.

Honestly, what could be bigger than taking over the Society, the government that ruled over all Vampires in the world? That was as close to world-domination as one could get, but Sinclair had a feeling that taking over the world wasn't something Zoran would do. Then again, neither did killing the members of the Society. Sinclair ran a hand through his golden hair, hair that used to be thick, and now felt thin and frail.

He was seriously getting way too stressed lately. When was the last time he just took a moment to relax? Weeks? Months? He couldn't even remember. "Maybe a drink or two will do me some good," he thought aloud as he reached his study. Sinclair reached out and opened the door, which slowly creaked open.

Inside, the study was dimly light by torches that were bolted on the walls. The Vampire Lord had been hoping for time to himself, but when he stepped through the threshold, he realized that he would have to wait another time for that, for he was far from alone. "Might I ask what you are doing in here?" Sinclair said to Gillfrey, making sure that the annoyance in his voice could be heard clearly, even by the most oblivious of people.

The Count turned around to meet the Vampire Lord's gaze; Sinclair noted the book in Gillfrey's hands. "I just thought I'd stop by and have a talk with you; it's been years, after all," Gillfrey said and turned a page in the book. Dust flew up from the parchment, which hadn't been touched in years. "Quite a collection you've started up here, Sinclair," the Count mused as he placed the old text back in its spot on the bookshelf, "If I recall correctly, you were never one for reading when we were children. What caused you to change your attitude towards literature?"

Sinclair narrowed his eyes for a moment before closing them and nonchalantly saying, "I have to occupy my free-time somehow. You know how I get when I don't have something to keep myself busy."

Gillfrey nodded and trailed his fingers along the spines of the books on the shelf, disturbing the dust that rested on the leather bindings. "By the layers of dust on these, I assume you don't have a lot of that so-called free-time," Gillfrey muttered and wiped the dust from his fingertips.

Sinclair rolled his eyes and told him, "Not as of late. I've been rather busy with running this Clan, if you haven't noticed." The Vampire Lord could feel his headache worsening; the last thing he wanted to do was exchange banter with Gillfrey. Sinclair strode across his study, coming to stop at the small table that housed his crystalline bottle of blood. He took the bottle in his hand and began to pour himself a glass.

The deep, red liquid came sloshing out into the glass, a cascade of life. "Care for some?" Sinclair asked, thinking it would be best to at least make an offer to his guest. Gillfrey seemed to think this over for a moment before finally shrugging his shoulders.

Sinclair held back a smart-remark that was on the tip of his tongue as he poured a glass for the Count. He handed the full-glass over to Gillfrey, who looked down at it skeptically. With a roll of his eyes, Sinclair told him, "Don't worry. The blood was donated to us by volunteers, which we paid. It wasn't taken illegally, if that's what you're thinking."

Gillfrey nodded and sipped from the glass after hearing this. Sinclair sighed, walked around his desk, and took a seat in his chair. His body sighed with relief. Gillfrey, glass of blood in hand, was pacing around the room, inspecting pictures that hung on the walls, and other decorations. Sinclair watched him closely. The Count then stopped in front of the Vampire Lord's desk and sat on the edge of it.

"This really is quite an impressive set-up you have here, Sinclair. Although, I am really surprised none of your underlings have rebelled against you or tried to take you down," Gillfrey mused as he continued to sip on his blood. Sinclair remained calmed, despite the taunting words. "They have no reason to challenge me. I'm the one who gave them a home and second chance to do something with their lives when the Society threw them to the side like trash. So, they know where they stand."

Gillfrey laughed humorlessly. "You never did accept the Society's way of thinking, that those who aren't Pureblooded or with Vampire heritage don't deserve a spot in the Society," the Count said bitterly. Sinclair narrowed his eyes at Gillfrey and retorted back with, "No, I didn't. To me, it made no sense to treat another Vampire like they were worthless because of circumstances that they couldn't help. They had no say in whether they were born half-human or Turned. In the end, to me, they were all Vampires and should have deserved to be treated equally."

Gillfrey leaned across the desk, narrowed his eyes at Sinclair, and told him, "But you know as well as I do that they are not our equals. Vampires like those that you are defending right now can hardly be called Vampires. They, at some point, or way, shape, or form, were human. Humans are not Vampires, nor should they ever be. It's unnatural, and to prove this point, the Society makes sure to make examples out of those who aren't Pureblooded by banishing them and denying them rights as a deterrent to prevent the unnatural from happening."

Sinclair felt his grip tighten on the glass in his hands. "And that seems to have worked out so well, with all of those Turned and half-breed Vampires that you've banished out of the Society that are running around in the streets of cities, hurting people and themselves as they try and survive," the Vampire Lord said harshly.

Sinclair released his hold on his glass of blood before he ended up breaking it in his hands. "And yet, you've been wondering all of these years why I left the Society, and for all of these years, I've been wondering why you haven't done the same thing," Sinclair added, his voice dripping with disapproval.

Gillfrey scowled and slid off the desk, turning his back to Sinclair. "You know, you would have made a great Count, perhaps even greater than Countess Lucia, and I'm not the only one who has thought this. Do you know how many times I've heard those exact words from other members of the Society? How many times they have said to my face that you would have been better at running things than me? More times than you probably think, Sinclair," Gillfrey said, his voice holding trace hints of pain.

"I was so happy when I first took control of the Society. I felt like I had accomplished something impossible, and then that was when the critique and rumors started. Everything I did was watched with careful eyes, scrutinized, and if I didn't do something perfectly, I was reprimanded for it. And then there were the stories that had spread through the Society like wildfire. Other members said things, like I had somehow threatened you and forced you to leave the Society, to hand over the position of Count over to me out of fear. Others said you left out of pity for me, or because we had grown up together. It made me furious," Gillfrey hissed.

He turned around and looked Sinclair dead in the eyes. "And because of those rumors and stories, I pushed myself to prove them wrong, to show them that I was deserving of being the Count. But even with all of the hard work I put into proving my worth, they still felt that I wasn't good enough. To them, I only got the job by default because you had left. They referred to you as the Fallen Count, while I was nothing more than the 'one the Society got stuck with.' That still haunts me to this day, and it's all because you decided to opt out, because you didn't agree with the Society," Gillfrey spat.

Sinclair noticed just how worked up the Count had gotten over this. Gillfrey was red in the face, his eyes a bit watered from emotional turmoil; Sinclair had never seen his childhood friend like this. The Count ran a trembling hand through his snow-white, pixie-length hair and began to pace around in front of Sinclair's desk.

"I didn't just leave because I didn't agree with the Society. Although, that did play a major part in it," Sinclair said, earning him Gillfrey's attention now, "But I also left and let you take my spot because I knew you would make a better Count than I ever would. I may have been stronger and more powerful than you, but there was one advantage you had over me, and that was the fact that you never let your emotions interfere with your judgment. You always remained loyal to the Society's standards and rules, upholding them at all times, no matter how personal of a scenario we were placed under. I, on the other hand, always let my emotions and personal beliefs cloud my judgment. That was my weakness, and one that could have been easily exploited and been my downfall."

Gillfrey was silent, allowing this revelation to sink in. He then shook his head and told Sinclair, "I'm done here." The Count then turned on his heels and stormed out of the study, brushing past Alucard, who was about to enter.

The second-in-command stared in surprise, and as he entered the study, asked, "What was that all about?" Sinclair ran his hands through his thin hair and let out a sigh of aggravation. "It's a long story, Alucard. A long, long story."

* * *

There's going to be this whole long history thing between Gillfrey and Sinclair in the next chapter or so, but I don't think it will be up until Saturday; got stuff and things. I do hope you all enjoyed this chapter, though. So, read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	18. Reliving The Past

_~O~_

The Vampire Lord could still remember those days clearly, as if the events of them had just happened hours before. Every image, every detail, was still fresh in his mind. But this wasn't something spectacular, to have such a recollection of that time; Vampires had exceptionally good memories. Sometimes, though, Sinclair wished that he could forget some of those memories.

If he was able to, then perhaps his life would be a bit more easier without the guilt of things resting on his shoulders, guilt that he could do nothing about. The Vampire Lord closed his eyes and allowed his mind to brush the dust off the memories of his youth, uncovering things he hadn't thought about for years. "As you probably already know, Alucard, Gillfrey and I know each other," the Vampire Lord said to his second-in-command, who sat patiently in a chair, silent and respectful.

Alucard gave a single nod to show that he was listening, and was well aware of the small fact that Sinclair had just told him. Sinclair began to pace around his study, a habit he had developed whenever he knew he would be speaking for a while. "This may be hard for you to believe," the Vampire Lord began, "but Gillfrey wasn't always so hostile and opinionated like he is now." Sinclair heard Alucard scoff under his breath; anyone who didn't know the real Gillfrey, would have done the same.

Sinclair continued on, ignoring his second-in-command's remark. "Trust me, he was very different when we were younger….But things happened that caused him to turn into what he is now," Sinclair said with a sigh. He still hated thinking back to how his old, childhood friend had become a puppet of the Society. "And what exactly happened to cause this?" Alucard asked, which caused Sinclair to regain his focus on the matter at hand.

The Vampire Lord, his feet already growing sore from pacing, leaned against the edge of his desk to take some of the weight off his aching heels. "Do you know how new Counts and Countesses take power, Alucard?" he asked. Alucard thought for a moment and finally said, "A new one usually takes power whenever one dies, or something like that. It's been a while since I've brushed up on my Societal studies, so correct me if I am wrong." Sinclair nodded and trailed his index finger over the smooth, wooden surface of his desk.

"In a way, you're kind of right. If a Count or Countess suddenly succumbs to death, the next highest member of the Society is sent in to take their spot until a proper replacement can be found, but there is also another way. Counts and Countesses can only serve for a hundred years. After that, a new one is chosen to fill the void," Sinclair explained. The hundred years servitude for the Society was something that most Vampires knew about, but it was the process in how a new leader is selected that not many knew about.

Sinclair pushed himself off the edge of his desk and strode over to the crystal bottle of blood. He poured himself a glass, making sure also to offer Alucard some, who turned it down, and returned to his desk, glass of blood in hand; he knew he would end up needing it when he was done talking.

He took a quick sip and sat it down beside him on the desk. "Well, enough with that little history lesson. I suppose I should start telling you what you really want to know, correct?" the Vampire Lord asked. Alucard nodded. Sinclair sighed heavily and closed his eyes for a moment, as if seeing where he should start off in his tale. When he found it, he opened his eyes and began to speak.

_Flashback_

Ice exploded out in front of Sinclair, sending little, shimmering shards flying past him. He could feel some of them touch his exposed arms and face, their icy fingers grabbing him and making his skin prickle with chill. He then refocused his power and sent forth the invisible force that was at his command. It barreled through the air and slammed into its intended target.

The white-haired Vampire that he had been sparring against, went flying back and landed hard on the ground. "Point! Victory to Sinclair!" a voice shouted off to the side. A small round of applause filled the night air, but Sinclair ignored it. He bowed his head to the judge of the fight, and made his way over to where his opponent lay. Sinclair extended his hand out and said, "Need some help, Gillfrey?"

The white-haired Vampire fixed his eyes on Sinclair outstretched hand, then shook his head. "No, I'm fine," he said gruffly and staggered to his feet. Sinclair was used to Gillfrey being hostile after a defeat, so the harshness behind his words didn't bother him. Over to the side, the fight judge shouted, "Next contestants, please!" Sinclair took that as his signal to leave the fighting stage. He followed after Gillfrey, who had already stomped off. "Hey!" Sinclair shouted, "Wait up! You don't have to walk that fast!"

He ran across the courtyard of the Society's stronghold to catch up, passing by the perfectly trimmed shrubs that dotted the area. Up ahead, underneath the dim glow of the flaming torches that were bolted into the stone walls of the courtyard, Sinclair saw Gillfrey sitting down at the base of a flight of stairs. He strode up to his friend and said, "You left out of there quick." Gillfrey shot a hostile glare up at Sinclair.

"Quiet," he hissed. Sinclair sighed and sat down beside Gillfrey, despite his friend's harshness. "Why do you insist on pestering me?" Gillfrey asked coldly. Sinclair rolled his eyes and said, "You always get like this when you lose, so I know you don't mean any of the things you're saying. All you're doing right now is sulking." Gillfrey growled and turned his gaze away from Sinclair.

"Well," he said shortly, "I mean this when I say I am growing sick of losing to you. I've defeated everyone else in this damn competition, except for you." Sinclair stared at his friend for a moment, then sighed. "What do you want me to do, then? If I let you win, then you'll only get pissed at me for that, and if I fight you to my best ability and win, then you still get pissed. There's not much I can do without getting on your bad side."

Gillfrey stood up abruptly from the step he was sitting on. "I never said I wanted you to take pity on me during the fights or forfeit! What I want to know is why, even though I keep training and training, I am still unable to even knock you down! How much more will I have to work to finally defeat you?" The white-haired Vampire shook his head and started to walk off, but Sinclair chased him down.

"Why is it so important for you to defeat me? You have the best scores in Society Theory out of all of us that are competing, not to mention that you're also one of the strongest-" Gillfrey stopped walking and turned abruptly on his heels. He narrowed his eyes at Sinclair and said, "Yeah, I might understand the Theory a lot better than the rest of you, but as you just said, I am _one _of the strongest, not _the _strongest. The role of Count or Countess in only taken by the strongest Vampire. Being book-smart and understanding the views of the Society isn't enough if I am not able to beat everyone who is placed in front of me."

Gillfrey shook his head disapprovingly and stomped off. Sinclair was about to chase him down again and try to calm his friend down, but thought better of it; he had never seen Gillfrey so worked up before. _Then again, it is getting near time for them to choose the next leader of the Society, _Sinclair thought to himself.

Perhaps that was why Gillfrey was so uptight. Sinclair knew just how badly his friend wanted to win the title of Count and run the Society. But as Gillfrey had said, running the Society was about more than just understanding the Theory; it was about being powerful. Sinclair sighed and left out of the courtyard. He made his way back into the stronghold and walked through the halls on the way back to his room, each of his footsteps echoing off the ornate walls.

He was halfway there when he came across the paintings of all of the previous Counts and Countesses, all the way back to the formation of the Society. Sinclair's eyes rested on the last Count, the one that had reached the end of his hundred year term and was now leaving, Count Malico.

Because of this Count leaving, a competition was being held now to see who would take his place as the new Count or Countess. This was standard protocol for the Society, a way to weed out those who were worthy, and those who weren't, but not just anyone could enter the competition for the coveted title. There were certain qualifications that had to be met.

A contestant had to be of Pureblood, Noble birthright, or have some kind of family standing in the Society. They also had to fall in a certain age range, gauged by human years, which was between the ages of 18 to 25; the Society wanted somebody young to ensure a long, successful reign. The thing was, though, if a Vampire met these qualifications, then they were automatically entered into the competition, regardless if they wanted to or not. Such was the case with Sinclair.

He hadn't wanted to be a part of this, to compete for something he didn't agree with. He had never agreed with the views of the Society, and because of that, was why he had some of the lowest scores in the Theory portion of the competition. Sadly, that wasn't what the bulk of the competition was judged on. The thing that counted the most, was power.

A Vampire, who knew nothing of the Society's rules or views, could possible win the title of Count or Countess if they were strong enough, because power spoke louder than brains in times of conflict. And Sinclair was quite obviously the strongest one in the competition. Even when he had held his powers back, he had been stronger than any of the other contestants.

It was clear that he would most likely win and become the new Count, even though he didn't want the position. The members of the Society would see just how powerful he was, and choose him as their victor. Other than being unable to agree with the Society's views, he also felt that he was unfit to take on the role of Count.

His power was one thing, but a Count had to be able to perform a task without allowing personal emotion into the mix, which was something that Sinclair just could not do. If anything, Gillfrey was more suited for the job. Not only did his friend have the best understanding of the Society's Theory, he also was fairly powerful himself. Although, not as powerful as Sinclair. And if there was one thing that Sinclair knew, it was that the members of the Society would not look past that.

They would not see that Gillfrey was a better choice, that he had their perfect ideals, as well as power. _No, they want whoever is strongest. Having brains is just a plus, _Sinclair thought bitterly. This was why he hated the Society. They were all about power, oppression. Sinclair didn't want anything to do with that. He had seen firsthand how the Society treated those that they didn't feel were equal, such as the half-breeds and Turned Vampires.

He just couldn't deal with having to uphold those views and treat those less fortunate how the Society wanted them to be treated. It made him sick. It also made him worry about Gillfrey. His friend knew the Society's views like the back of his hand, but even Gillfrey didn't agree with everything they did; Sinclair didn't think anyone fully agreed with the Society.

What he was worried about, though, was that if Gillfrey wanted the position of Count bad enough and got it, that he would go against what he thought was right and wrong, that he would become their puppet. Sinclair sighed. There was no way to know such things. He sighed, completely fed up with it all, and hurried back to his room. When he got to the hallway that contained his living quarters, Sinclair was surprised to find Gillfrey standing outside the door.

The white-haired Vampire hadn't noticed Sinclair's arrival yet; he was too focused on forming a shard of ice in his hands into different shapes. Sinclair watched as the ice transformed into elaborate creations, things like a rose, and a bird in mid-flight. Gillfrey was truly a master at his powers, even though they had their limits.

Sinclair, still unnoticed, continued to watch the ice take different forms. He had always found something about ice to be mesmerizing. To Sinclair, it was amazing how something could be so beautiful one minute, and then turn deadly the next. In a way, he envied Gillfrey's powers. While Sinclair's powers might be stronger, there was no beauty to them; it was all brute force, and a force that couldn't be seen, at that. Sinclair took his gaze from the transforming ice, and looked at Gillfrey, who wore a focused expression.

_The thing about ice, though, _Sinclair thought, _is that no matter how thick or strong you think it is, it is still fragile, and can still crack. _With that thought, Sinclair cleared his throat, which broke Gillfrey's concentration. The ice shard in the white-haired Vampire's hands, exploded into a fine dust, almost as fine as snow. Gillfrey stared at his empty hands in surprise, then turned and saw Sinclair standing beside him.

"Ah, I didn't know you were there. I'm sorry," his friend apologized and brushed the snow from his hands. "It's alright. Might I ask what you're doing outside of my room?" Sinclair asked, motioning to the door beside his friend. Gillfrey's eyes lit up, as if he just remembered something. "Oh, yeah. I was waiting here in hopes of running into you. I….I just wanted to apologize for how I was earlier, after that match, that is. I'm just stressed out with the competition coming to an end and all."

Sinclair smiled sadly and told him, "It's okay. I know how much getting the title of Count would mean to you, so I understand that you're stressing out about it." Gillfrey leaned against the wall and said with a heavy sigh, "You're probably going to win it, though. I see no reason why you wouldn't." Sinclair could hear the envy in Gillfrey's voice. A silence hung between the two of them for a moment.

_That's the thing. I don't want to win, _Sinclair thought to himself. If he won the title of Count, then he would be stuck with it until death, or his hundred year term came to an end, neither of which he wanted to do. A thought then crossed Sinclair's mind. There _was _something else he could do to prevent such a thing from happened; it wouldn't generate a pleasant reaction, though. Then again, what did he care?

He'd rather tick off the Society than get stuck being a slave to it. "Well," Gillfrey said with a yawn, "It's almost morning, and tomorrow night is the ceremony where they'll announce the new Count or Countess. See you then." Gillfrey then walked off down the hallway. Sinclair stood outside of his room for a moment, before finally going inside of his living quarters. He laid down and tried to get some sleep, but his mind was running rampant with the idea he had come up with to get out of becoming the Count.

Sinclair ended up laying in his bed that entire day, tossing and turning, and staring up at the ceiling of his room. And the time it took for the ceremony that night, felt as if it was taking forever. Minutes felt like hours, and hours felt like days. But that time finally came, and Sinclair eagerly changed into the set of clothes he and the other contestants had been given for the ceremony.

He slipped on the elaborate clothes, which were red with black patterns sewn into the fabric. When he was finally dressed, Sinclair hurried towards the Grand Hall, where the crowning would take place. The moment he cleared the door to the massive room, he found it brimming with members of the Society, all who were present to see their new leader crowned. As he walked by, several of the members wished him luck.

_Even they all know I'm going to win, _he thought bitterly. Sinclair pushed through the rest of the crowd and made his way to where the other contestants stood, which was in front of the throne that belonged to the Count or Countess. He took the spot that was vacant beside Gillfrey. "Hey, didn't think you were going to show up," his friend whispered to him.

Sinclair chuckled and said jokingly, "I had a bit of trouble getting into the clothes." Gillfrey smiled and turned his attention to the crowd in front of him, which had suddenly fallen silent, and Sinclair saw why. Through the main door, the previous Count, Count Malico, strode into the room. The crowd parted, allowing him passage up to the contestants. His eyes scanned each and everyone one of them, as if judging them right there. When he was done, he turned around and faced his loyal subjects.

"Lords and Ladies, I welcome you all here on this glorious day, a day in which a new leader will reign over you," he said loudly, his voice booming against the marble walls of the stronghold. A round of applause echoed throughout the Grand Hall. Malico motioned to the contestants behind him and said, "These young Vampires here have shown what skills and special abilities they possess in the name of this coveted title, and it truly is a shame that not all of them can be given the honor of becoming a Count or Countess. But they will not go unrewarded. They all, as payment for their hard work, will be given the title of Lord or Lady."

Out of the corner of Sinclair's eye, he saw several of his fellow contestants smile. Obtaining the title of a Vampire Lord or Lady wasn't exactly an easy task to accomplish on one's own; it was something that could take a Vampire years to achieve. And it also ensured a rightful place among the members of the Society. Count Malico clapped his hands, in which the crowd followed suit.

He then quieted his subjects and resumed his speech. "As many of you know, to become a Count or Countess, one must show superior strength, and must also know the standards of the Society. These two factors ensure that whoever takes my place, will follow the same standards that I have left behind, and perhaps even surpass them." Beside him, Sinclair could see that Gillfrey had tensed up a bit.

"Relax," he whispered to his friend under his breath. Gillfrey glanced over at him and whispered back, "I can't help it. The suspense is about to kill me." Sinclair turned his attention back to the crowd in front of him. _It won't be bothering you much longer, Gillfrey, trust me. _Count Malico had continued on speaking, but Sinclair had missed what was said due to being lost in his thoughts. When he came back into the conversation, Malico said, "And now, without further delay, the new Count or Countess shall be named."

The Grand Hall fell silent as Malico approached the contestants. He stopped right in front of Sinclair, turned around, and said to the crowd, "I give to you, your new Count!" The crowd erupted into applause and cheers. Out of the corner of his eye, Sinclair could see the envy and disappointment on Gillfrey's face; his friend hated him for this. Sinclair shook his head, realizing that now was the time to put his plan into action, and stepped forward. "Can I have quiet, please?" he called out into the crowd. Silence fell across the Grand Hall, except for Malico's laughter.

"Well, would you look at that? He's already taking charge. I think he'll be a great Count, don't you all agree? Now, what is it that you would like to share with your followers, Count Sinclair?" Malico asked. The ring of his name with the title in front of it held a sense of power to it, power that put him above everyone else, power that made his words law. And that's just what Sinclair was about to use his words for; law.

"I have an announcement to make. It's to my knowledge that the Count has the ability to exile Vampires from the Society, with or without reason." The air suddenly grew tense, and although all eyes were on him, Sinclair didn't feel nervous at all. No, he was a hundred percent sure as to what he was about to do. "So," he continued, "It is to my decree now, that I, your new Count, exile myself from the Society."

Every eye in the room widened with shock. Nothing like this had happened before, so how else were they supposed to react? Gillfrey turned to face him and asked, "What the hell are you doing? Exiling yourself will be the end of your life! You'll be scrounging around like a filthy animal with the half-breeds and Turned Vampires!" Sinclair stared a Gillfrey in surprise.

Never once had Sinclair heard how his friend felt about the Vampires that were treated unequally by the Society. Now, he had, and it wasn't what he had hoped to hear. His friend felt no differently about them than any other member in the Society, which proved even more to Sinclair than Gillfrey was more fit for such a role. He turned away from his friend and faced the crowd again.

"You've all heard right. I am exiling myself from the Society. I don't wish to be a part of this any longer, and now that I have the power to leave without having to commit some heinous crime, I am doing so." Sinclair stepped away from the rest of the contestants and began to cut through the crowd. Shocked faces watched him as he went by, and nobody stood in his way; they parted for him like they had done for Malico. But as he passed by, he could hear the sounds of others mumbling, more than likely talking about what Sinclair had just done.

He then reached the door that would lead him outside, to freedom away from the Society. The two guards that were stationed at the door, glanced at one another, then opened the door; it was the Count's decree, so it had to be followed. Cool night air rushed in and wrapped itself around Sinclair. Never before had he felt so liberated from the close-mindedness of the Society than he did just then.

He then crossed the threshold of the door and walked off into the night, leaving the stunned audience and the Society behind. But he hadn't walked a hundred yards before he heard Malico speak again. "Well," the old Count said, "with this sudden change of events, I suppose we must choose our second choice for the matter, then." There was short pause before Malico shouted, "All hail your new leader, Count Gillfrey!" And with that being said, Sinclair continued to walk and vanished into the night.

_~O~_

"So, you were the Count at one point?" Alucard asked. Sinclair nodded and drank the last sip of blood from his glass; he was on his fourth. "Only for a few short minutes, but yes, I was, and I used that power to get out of it," he said as he poured himself another glass.

Sinclair watched as Alucard digested the things he had just learned. It must have been strange for the second-in-command to suddenly learn that, the leader of their Clan, had been chosen to be the Count, the most powerful Vampire in the world. Sinclair took a sip from his current glass of blood, savoring it. "And Gillfrey never knew of my reasoning for exiling myself, he never knew that I didn't want to become Count.

Although, he knew I didn't agree with the Society, but then again, who really did agree with everything they did?…I just didn't want anything to do with the Society, and when I saw I had the chance to get out, I took it." Sinclair could feel his mind growing fuzzy from the amount of blood he had consumed in such a short span of time, and he knew it wouldn't be much longer before he body demanded rest after drinking some much.

"It's clear that Gillfrey hates me now, mainly because of rumors spread after he became Count that made it out like I left out of pity for him because we had grown up together, which, looking at the situation back then, seems believable. Nobody knew of my reasons for leaving, though. I never told anyone, not even Gillfrey, and he was my best friend back then. So, members of the Society had no choice but to make up a story to tell others who asked about what happened that day," Sinclair explained.

The Vampire Lord thought back to what Gillfrey had said that members of the Society had called him after his self-exile. _The Fallen Count….It's fitting, I suppose, seeing as I was the first Count to be exiled. _Sinclair pushed himself from the edge of his desk, and when he stood up, he was hit by a wave of vertigo. He stumbled and caught himself on his desk.

Alucard, faithful as ever, quickly stood up from his chair and was ready to help the Vampire Lord, if need be. The second-in-command glanced down at the glass on blood on the desk and said, "I think you've had more than enough to drink tonight, Sir. I should have stopped you after the second glass, but I didn't want to interrupt you while you were speaking."

Sinclair nodded, seeing that there was no need to fight with Alucard over something so trivial. And, if anything, the Vampire Lord was exhausted and in desperate need of a good rest, even if that rest was induced by consuming too much blood. Alucard offered to help Sinclair back to his room, but the Vampire Lord declined, feeling sturdy enough on his feet to make it there on his own.

He made his way out of the study, knowing good and well that his second-in-command wasn't too far behind, but didn't say anything about it. It took Sinclair a little longer than usual to reach his room, but when he finally did, he locked the door behind him and laid down on his bed, not even bothering to slip into more comfortable clothes to sleep in.

He could feel his mind drifting away as the intoxicating effects of too much blood took hold of him. It didn't take too much longer for him to completely lose the fight and give in, at which time he slipped within in a deep sleep.

* * *

Stupid. Long. Chapter...I am now creatively drained for the day. I hope you guys liked this, so please read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	19. Icy Conditions

_~O~_

Alucard was still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Sinclair, their leader, had been steps away from being the Count of the Society, a position in Vampire hierarchy that could only be taken by the most powerful of all. The second-in-command had always known that Sinclair was powerful, but never quite _that _powerful.

This revelation made Alucard question just what else he didn't know about the Vampire Lord. What else hadn't their leader told them? Suddenly, Alucard felt somewhat betrayed. He thought he knew Sinclair the most, knew things about him that others couldn't even fathom because of the trust the Vampire Lord placed in his second-in-command. Did Sinclair perhaps not trust Alucard as much as he said?

He was tempted to go and wake the Vampire Lord and confront him, but decided against it; it wasn't wise to do such a thing. Alucard shook his head and pushed his doubts away. So what if Sinclair chose to keep some things to himself? There was nothing wrong with that, but perhaps what was troubling Alucard so much, was the sheer magnitude of this secret; Sinclair had been chosen as the Count.

Alucard began to wonder how the rest of the Clan would react to learning about this. Most of the Vampires that made up their Clan were Vampires that were from the Society and had defected, or had been cast aside like trash. Odds were that they wouldn't take kindly to learning that their leader had been selected by the Society as the ruler of all Vampires. "It's for the best if I keep my mouth shut on this matter," Alucard said aloud to himself.

_Not that I was planning on informing the rest of the Clan, anyway. _"What matter?" a familiar voice asked from behind. Alucard spun around and faced Loran. "Huh?" the second-in-command asked nervously. From where he stood, Alucard could clearly see Loran's features. The gray-haired Vampire's eyes were dark with circles, and his face sunken in a bit.

In other words, Loran had been through hell the past week, and showed it. Not only had Loran treated all the injured Clan members after the battle with Alexander practically by himself, but now he had to also deal with the news that his parents had been murdered, and the Society dismantled, both by the hands of his own brother. Alucard couldn't imagine what kind of grief his fellow Clan mate had to have been going through.

"You spoke of some matter," Loran repeated to answer the question Alucard forget he had asked. The second-in-command ran a nervous hand through his black hair and said, "Ah, yes. That matter." He entertained the thought of telling Loran, knowing the gray-haired Vampire could keep a secret better than anyone else in the Clan, but decided against it. Loran had been through enough that week, and Alucard felt that dropping more surprises on him would be too much.

"It's nothing, really. I was just arguing with myself about something," Alucard lied. He hoped that Loran would leave it at that and not press the matter any further, and, much to the second-in-command's relief, he did just that. The gray-haired Vampire nodded and said, "Alright, then, if you say so. Well, I should really be on my way. I've got to check-in on Carson and make sure his wounds are still healing up."

Loran started to walk away, but Alucard stopped him. "Wait up a moment," he said, "Don't you think you should take it easy for a bit? You've been through enough the past week. A break would do you some good." Loran appeared surprised by Alucard's suggestion. "I'm fine. Really, I am," the gray-haired Vampire said, his voice wavering a bit. Alucard couldn't help but see how fragile Loran had become after all of the recent events that had transpired.

"No," Alucard said sternly, "you're not. You were already run ragged after treating all of our injured comrades, then Gillfrey came along and informed us about Zoran, and you just haven't been right since then. And I'm sure I'm not the only one who has noticed this. If they haven't, then it's quite obvious looking at you now." Alucard hadn't meant to sound harsh, but he had to try and talk some sense into Loran.

The gray-haired Vampire adverted his gaze from Alucard and took several steps back. "I don't know what you're talking about. Zoran has nothing to do with me. All that's wrong with me is that I'm a bit stressed from having to treat Carson's wound, which is a lot nastier than you think. On top of that, Gillfrey has been breathing down my neck to try and hurry up and tell him if Carson will survive or not. That's it," Loran said hastily and started to walk off again.

Alucard was about to stop him, but decided against it and let the gray-haired Vampire continue on his way; there was no point in continuing their conversation, especially when it wasn't going to go anywhere anytime soon. The second-in-command leaned against the rocky wall of the hallway and sighed heavily. To Alucard, it felt as if the entire enclave had been shaken to its core since Gillfrey's arrival.

So many things had come into the light, many of which, he thought, might have been better off staying in the dark. There was the matter with Sinclair having been the Count, even though for a short time, as well as the whole ordeal with Shun and Alice's Imprint, which had only grown more complicated from what Alucard had heard. And topping all of that off, was the problem of Zoran's sudden betrayal.

Alucard began to wonder if, when everything was set straight, anything would go back to how it used to be. When he thought about it, he seriously doubted it. Now, whenever he would look at Sinclair, he knew he would see a Count, not a leader of the Yoru Clan. He knew that whenever others would look at Loran, they would only think of him as the brother of the one who destroyed the Society.

Alucard shook his head. Was it too much to ask to have things go back to a state of normalcy, to how it was before Alexander caused problems, and before Zoran turned on them? It was true that those times had their own problems, but they were nothing compared to what was happening to them at the moment. Alucard let out another heavy sigh; he was going to end up worrying himself to death if he continued at this rate.

The second-in-command was about to head to the main room, thinking that the walk there would help relax his rampaging mind, but stopped short. When he turned around and faced his direction of travel, Alucard stopped, and for good reason too; Gillfrey was heading his way.

Quite frankly, the Count was the last person that Alucard wished to have a confrontation with, and that was saying something when one thought about his anti-social stance towards the rest of the Clan. But wasn't about to let Gillfrey see this and exploit this as weakness.

Instead, Alucard kept his composure calm and blasé as he walked past the Count, even offering a slight incline of the head as acknowledgement. But right he thought that his act had gotten him out of having to speak with the Count, Gillfrey said, "You're name is Alucard, correct?" The second-in-command stopped and glanced over his shoulder at Gillfrey. "Yes, what's it to you?" he replied coldly.

The Count grinned and asked, "Oh, nothing much. I was just wondering if you were perhaps Lord Vincent's half-breed, bastard child that I had once heard stories about from some members of the Society." Alucard felt his body go rigid. It wasn't often that he heard his father's real name, but the name still made Alucard feel the same disgust as he had years ago.

That, and the second-in-command didn't like knowing that somebody else knew about his dark past. "And what if I am?" he asked harshly, never meeting Gillfrey's gaze. He heard the Count chuckle with amusement before saying, "Oh, nothing. I was just curious. You know, it doesn't surprise me that you ended up with Sinclair. He was always so sympathetic towards the half-breeds. Now that I think about, he probably pities your kind that same way he pitied me when we were younger."

Alucard growled and turned on his heel, locking his enraged gaze with Gillfrey's. "You're wrong about that! Sinclair does not pity _my _kind, or any kind, for that matter! He treats us all as equals here in this Clan!" Alucard shouted, "And if anything, he never pitied you when you were younger. Now, I'm not sure I can say the same thing." Gillfrey's eyes widened a bit in surprise, signaling that Alucard's words struck a nerve.

This filled the second-in-command with a sense of satisfaction. _Good. Let my words bother him. He deserves it for all of the trouble he's caused the Clan. _Gillfrey seemed to have recovered from his temporary shock by now. He narrowed his lavender-colored eyes at Alucard, and slowly strode up to him. The Count now stood beside Alucard with only mere inches of space keeping their shoulders from touching.

The air around them suddenly grew cold, and Alucard could see tiny little ice particles forming on the ends of his black hair. "You might want to watch how you talk to those who are superior to you, half-breed. That sharp-tongue of yours could get you in trouble one day," Gillfrey said, his words as cold as the air that lingered around them. Alucard felt his heart speed up with nervous adrenaline.

He knew that Gillfrey was more than capable of striking him down in a matter of seconds; Alucard stood no chance against the Count. With much reluctance, the second-in-command cast down his gaze and said, "Yes, Sir. I apologize. It won't happen again." The temperature of the air returned to normal, which caused a chill to shoot through Alucard's body.

Gillfrey grinned and said, "Smart choice, half-breed. Just keep in mind where you stand compared to others, and you shouldn't have to worry about something like this happening again." The Count, with that being said, brushed by Alucard, leaving the second-in-command behind to wallow in self-loathing. Alucard ran a hand through his hair, hating himself for submitting to Gillfrey's intimidation factor.

But he knew that if the Count chose to attack him, then there was no way he would have made it out unharmed. Alucard couldn't even hold his own against Sinclair's powers; Gillfrey wouldn't be much different. The second-in-command rubbed the sides of his arms to brush off the last of the chill that still clung to him, but it wouldn't go away.

That was when Alucard realized that he wasn't experiencing a chill from the cold, but rather a chill from raw, unadulterated power. He had felt the same chill before, but it had been a long time ago and after he had become a part of the Yoru Clan. It had also been the first time that he experienced Sinclair using his powers; the two gave off the same air-rippling effect.

But Sinclair's, by far, gave off more energy than Gillfrey's. Alucard shuddered as his body was racked with another chill. It didn't matter at that point who gave off more energy. What did matter, was the fact that two beings with that much power, who despised one another, were under the same roof.

_I have a feeling that this isn't going to end well, _he thought grimly. Alucard shook his head, pushing the chill of power from his mind, and retreated to his room to ensure that he wouldn't run into Gillfrey again that night.

* * *

there more than likely won't be any uploads for a while. i have to do some errands tomorrow, and then friday and satuday I am going to be out of town on some band and college stuff and won't be back till sunday (i'll probably be too tired to do anything that day as well). So, monday sounds like when I might be able to get a new chapter up. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	20. Stronger Than Yesterday

_~O~_

Shun and Alice had remained silent after their little moment back in the park. It wasn't an awkward silence, though. It was more along the lines of a peaceful silence. They had kissed, which Alice had enjoyed; the only thing was trying to figure out how to start a conversation after something of that magnitude, something that both of them appeared to be having difficulty with.

Perhaps Shun didn't want to talk, though. Maybe he just wanted to enjoy the blissful silence that had followed their moment. If that was the case, then why not go along for the ride? Alice decided that might be best for the time-being. But since then, the two of them had left the park and were now walking through the city. Despite it being late at night, traffic still zoomed by them on the streets, not even thinking that the two teens were anything but human.

Alice found it strange how people could look at them and not see that they were different; she still half-expected something about her appearance to be altered since her Vampiric nature returned after years of laying dormant. And yet, she still seemed to look the same, no matter how closely she looked at herself. Around them, lights on buildings were lit up, chasing away the darkness of the night.

It was amazing, with the downfall of Alexander over a week ago, which had brought about an end to the massive killings, just how quickly the city had started to bounce back and return things to a state of normalcy. The people, as far as Alice knew, had questioned why the killings ended. Then again, why would they? She knew she wouldn't question it if she hadn't known the truth about what was really going on during that time. Alice knew better than to think that everything was back to normal, though.

She knew that the people were still scared, watching over their shoulders for the unknown murderers that had run through the city at night, killing people and draining them of their blood without any rhyme or reason. There was also the matter of the families who had lost dear relatives to the killings. Their lives would never go back to normal, for they had no answer as to who, or what, had killed their loved ones.

Regardless as to how much damage had been done by Alexander's Vampires, or how much time it would take to heal all of the wounds caused by the blood that had been shed, Alice was happy that it was all over, that things could start trying to go back to the way they had been.

Although, not everything could go back that way for her. Because she had gotten involved with Shun, because she had learned the truth, her life had been turned upside down, and things she thought she knew, had been lies her whole life. Some of these things were good, like having gotten closer to Shun, others, not so much; Alice still didn't know exactly how she felt about having been a Vampire her whole life, despite Shun trying to reassure her that it was okay, that she would get through it. Alice hadn't realized that she had stopped walking until Shun spoke.

"Alice? Are you alright?" he asked from where he stood a couple feet in front of her. She shook herself away from her thoughts and smiled. "Yeah, I was just distracted by something," she told him. Those had been the first words they had said since leaving the park, and even though they were simple, they felt weird to say after such a long expanse of silence.

Perhaps Alice thought their conversation would have been about something deeper, but it didn't really matter to her. Shun gave her a skeptical look, then said, "Alright, then. If you say so." With that being said, the two continued on their walk again. They went a ways before coming to stop at a crosswalk. Traffic rushed by through the intersection in front of them.

Alice glanced up at the timer for the crosswalk; they had ten seconds before the lights would change and allow them to cross the street. She then glanced over to her left and realized they were standing beside a pharmacy, the very one that Alice had run into Shun at all those months ago.

That had also been the day that Shun had gone missing, the day when, she later discovered, he had been Turned into a Vampire. "You remember when we ran into each other here?" she asked before she realized it. Shun strode up beside her and looked at the building with her. "Yeah, I do. I was really surprised to have seen you there," he told her. Alice nodded.

"I had been there to pick something up for Marucho, if I recall correctly. And you had been here to pick up some stuff for your grandfather," she said back, then stopped herself from saying anything else. She had mentioned his grandfather, and now, she remembered that before all hell broke lose with Alexander, his grandfather had been killed, more than likely by Vampires.

Alice still wondered if Shun even knew anything about the old man's death. She glanced over to read his expression, but his face was hidden beneath his hair. "Yeah, I had been, hadn't I?" he said flatly. That was all Alice needed to see to know that he did know about his grandfather's death.

She felt a pang of guilt for bringing it up without realizing it and causing old wounds to reopen for Shun. He turned away from her and looked up at the crosswalk sign, which had turned from an orange hand, to a green person. "We better go on across now, or we'll have to wait till the next light," he said hastily.

Shun was obviously trying to get off the topic of his grandfather. Was he really still hurting that badly from the old man's death? Alice knew that his grandfather was the only family Shun had left and all, but she didn't think the two were close enough for him to grieve over. Perhaps it was because his grandfather had been killed by Vampires. Maybe that was why Shun was so raw about it.

Alice wasn't sure, and she didn't think it was a good idea to press the matter further. The two of them hurried through the crosswalk just as the lights changed again, allowing another wave of late-night traffic through the intersection. The cars zoomed on by without hesitation. Now, the silence that hung between them wasn't blissful as it had previously been, but rather, it was now tense and almost unbearable, which was making Alice wish she had never brought up his grandfather.

She didn't like knowing that she had rubbed salt in raw wounds and was the cause of an old pain to resurface. Ahead of her, Shun had stopped walking and now stared down an alleyway between two buildings. "What is it?" she asked and looked down the alley as well.

She didn't see anything except for trash and empty boxes. "This was the place that I had run into Slay, who had knocked me out and taken me to the enclave to be seen by Sinclair. In others words, this was where my life was changed, regardless as to whether or not I wanted it to be," he said darkly. Alice returned her gaze to the alley, seeing it with a different view now.

It now meant something, when not two minutes ago, she would have thought it to be just another filthy passageway between the buildings. "Do you hate Sinclair for what he did to you?" she asked without taking her gaze from the alley. Shun remained silent for a moment, as if thinking about her question, then said, "No, I don't hate him for it. What he did to me was in the best interest of his Clan and business, and although I wasn't too pleased about it at first, I can't even imagine going back to my old life now. This, the whole Vampire thing, feels as if it's been a part of my life for years rather than months. It's made me stronger."

Alice thought about his words for a moment. Being Turned, as much as it had altered his life, had made him stronger. _Perhaps I should do the same. I shouldn't try and continue to fight against what's happened to me, but rather accept it and let it make me stronger, _she thought to herself. Alice then tensed up when she caught the smell of something in the wind.

Its scent was thick and coppery, and she instantly knew what is was. She turned to Shun to ask him if he smelled it to, but he spoke first. "Blood," he said. Alice nodded. "I smell it too," she said. She noticed that Shun had tensed up like her. He then said, "Something tells me that we have company nearby, and that they're not exactly the friendly type." Alice raised an eyebrow, confused.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Shun glanced around, checking to make sure they were alone. "It's human blood we're smelling, and with as thick as the smell is, it's not just somebody that might have cut themselves. With this amount, it can only be another Vampire, and drinking blood directly from a human is forbidden, as I've mentioned before," he said. Alice felt her face heat up a bit.

The last part of his explanation was somewhat directed at her. Or, at least, that's how she took it to be. She had given Shun her blood when he had needed it, and he had told her that it wasn't allowed to do so. But in the end, his need overpowered his will, and he had drank from her. "So, in other words," he continued, "I don't think whoever is getting a late-night snack is exactly on our side."

She nodded, understanding what he was telling her. "So…..What do we do? Do we help the person?" she asked. Alice didn't want to leave somebody that could possibly be saved before it was too late. Shun shook his head and told her, "The thickness of the blood in the air suggests that the person has already lost a good amount of blood, if not all of it. Besides, a Vampire that's doing something like this is more than likely dangerous. It'd be best if we don't get involved and draw attention to ourselves."

Alice nodded, not liking what she was hearing. She didn't like the fact that some innocent person was having their life drained from them, while they just sat there nearby, completely able to do something if so desired. But she also understood what Shun was saying. She was well-aware that the Vampire committing this illegal act was more than likely dangerous, but that still didn't help put her conscious to ease. Shun reached out and took her wrist in his hand. "Come on. Let's get out of here," he said.

She nodded and allowed him to lead her away from the alley. His hand was warm and comforting, and made Alice feel safe, for it was the same familiar warmth that she had experienced back in the park. It was a warmth she had come to love. But even with this little sense of comfort, her mind still drifted back to the poor soul they had left for dead back somewhere in that alley.

Although, she completely understood that the risk outweighed the chance that the person could be saved in the end. They walked a bit further until they reached part of the city's shopping district. In the middle of it was a large clock-tower, whose time read that it was almost four in the morning. Shun looked up at the clock and said, "It'll be daylight soon. We might want to start back towards the enclave before we get caught out in the sun."

Alice nodded, remembering the burning sensation she had felt when she had stepped out into the light one morning, while everyone else in the enclave had been sound asleep. She rubbed the sides of her arms, which had been where the sun had turned them slightly pink after a few seconds in the light.

Shun turned around and started heading off in the direction that would take them back to the enclave, and Alice was just about to follow after him when something caught her eye. She turned around and looked at where she thought she saw something run by, but she was just met with shadows and plants that had been planting on the grounds of the shopping district. "Alice, are you coming or not?" Shun asked.

She gave the area one last glance before turning around. "Yeah, I'm coming. I thought I saw something move, but I guess it was just the wind moving a tree branch around or something," she said as she approached him. They hadn't even cleared the main square of the shopping district when something knocked over a trash can beside them. Alice jumped back and began to look around frantically for what might have caused the can to fall over.

Shun was on alert too, looking around a bit more thoroughly than she was. "M-Maybe it was a cat?" she asked as the initial shock of the noise began to wear off. Shun narrowed his eyes and told her, "I don't think so." He then tilted his head back slightly and smelled the air.

His eyes then grew wide. "Get back!" he shouted to Alice as he grabbed onto her wrist and pulled her to the side. Just as he did this, something lunged out from one of the well-manicured bushes and tackled Shun, sending him to the ground. Alice stumbled back and fell back into another bush, landing hard into the dirt as well.

Splinters of mulch and wood chips stuck into her hands from where she had broken her fall, but she didn't pay that any mind. What she was focused on, was the fight going on before her. Shun had gotten back to his feet now, but his attacker had as well. "I thought I smelled the same blood as from back in that alley," Shun said, "Looks like I was right."

Alice turned her attention to the creature that had attacked them. The Vampire was scrawny, and its eyes wild and mad. Covering its face was a dried layer of blood. This was one of the Vampires that Alice had come to know as the thing of nightmares. Out of fear, she pressed her back into the shrub bush behind her, branches and leaves scratching at her exposed arms.

"Feeeed….Need to feeeeeed," the Vampire hissed. Shun tensed up, and Alice heard him say under his breath, "Blight." She felt her eyes widen. Shun had explained to her that Blight was a condition that a Vampire could develop if they fed from humans too often. It would rot their minds, make them lose themselves, and curse them with a hunger for blood that couldn't be satisfied, no matter how much they consumed.

Alice realized that, because of this, the deadliness of this fight had only gotten worse. If Shun were to get hurt in anyway by this Vampire, then he too would end up contracting the disease as well. The Blighted Vampire lunged at him again, and Shun dodged with cat-like grace. The Vampire let out an animalistic cry and charged again.

This time, Shun wasn't quick enough, and he was taken to the ground. He struggld there, the weight of his attacker pressing down on him and limiting his movements. "Shun!" Alice screamed. She felt helpless. There was no way she could stand up against this Vampire. She didn't have the strength or skills to do so.

This was what she had meant when she told Shun that she felt like a hindrance to him, dead-weight. She couldn't even fight to help him. _Think, Alice, think! _Back at the fight, the Blight Vampire was snapping its jaw near Shun's throat, trying its best to sink his teeth into the raven-haired teen's neck. Alice could see that Shun was struggling to keep his attacker at bay. "Alice, get out of here!" he shouted at her.

Alice, still pressed into the shrub she had fallen in, shook her head; she wasn't going to leave him. But then again, what else could she do? An idea came to her mind, and she gathered up as much courage as she could. Alice scrambled up to her feet and ran over to where the fight was taking place. She then dove at the Blighted Vampire, tackling him and knocking him off of Shun.

The two of them rolled for a bit before their attacker regained the upper-hand. Now, she was pinned beneath the Vampire and at his mercy. Alice knew she couldn't hold him off for nearly as long as Shun could. Instinctively, she struggled to free herself, even though she knew that she would be unable to.

Off to the side, she heard Shun yell, "Alice!" The Blighted Vampire on top of her was right at her neck, with perhaps only mere inches keeping his fangs from her skin. She could smell his foul breath, which reeked of death and blood. "Feeeeed," it hissed right at her ear, which caused a chill to shoot through her spine. Alice shut her eyes tightly, readying herself to feel her neck be torn apart, but it never happened.

Instead, the weight that was being placed on her lightened a bit, and when she opened her eyes, she saw why. Shun had pulled the Blighted Vampire off of her, although not all the way. He had pulled a dagger, which she recalled that he kept on himself at all times. The silver blade was placed right against the Blighted Vampire's neck, and it one fluent motion, Shun slit the creature's throat, sending dark, almost black blood gushing from the wound. The Vampire tried to say something, but its words came out as a gargled cry.

Then, the creature fell over and didn't move after that. The light that had been in the Vampire's crazed eyes went out as its life bled out from the gash in its throat. Shun was kneeling down beside the body, holding on tightly to his side and his face contorted in a grimace. "Don't…Don't do something stupid like that again…..Please," he said, as if each word he spoke caused him pain.

Alice quickly got up and made her way over to the raven-haired teen. "Are you hurt?" she asked and glanced over him. The only blood she found was from the Blighted Vampire, and a bit that was dripping down the side of his face. She reached up to touch the bleeding gash on Shun's forehead. "He…He didn't scratch me or anything…The wound on my forehead was from…..was from when I hit the ground…..Now, my side is another story…..I think he might have broken a couple…..a couple of my ribs," he said breathlessly and began to cough.

When he did, he spat a bit of blood up. Alice felt panic starting to set in. "Do you think you can make it back to the enclave?" she asked nervously. Shun wiped blood from his mouth and told her, "I…..I should start to…start to heal up soon…..Just let me rest for a bit." He laid back on the ground, still tightly clutching onto his injured side, and took in a sharp breath of air when the movement caused him more pain.

"I'm sorry," Alice said. Shun raised a brow and looked at her. "Why are you sorry?" he asked, "You didn't cause this." Alice shook her head and could feel tears threatening to spill over. "If I had been strong enough, then I could have helped out, and you might not have gotten hurt," she explained and wiped the tears out of her eyes before they had a chance to break free.

Shun looked at her for a moment before he said, "You did help, though. If you hadn't…..done what you did, even though it was stupid, then I…..then I probably would have gotten a lot worse injuries than this…He probably would have bitten me if you hadn't acted when you did….He had me pinned to where I couldn't get to my knife…And he was causing so much pain to my side…that I couldn't focus enough to use my powers."

Alice felt a bit more relieved in knowing that she had helped somehow, that she hadn't been in the way. Although, she still felt that if she had known how to fight, Shun might have escaped unharmed. Alice glanced up at the clock-tower that loomed above them and saw the time; it would be dawn in a couple of hours. "You think you'll be healed up enough before sunrise to try and get back to the enclave?" she asked.

Shun thought for a moment and finally said, "I don't know…..Maybe. There's a chance that I could, but I'm not…..I'm not sure how severe my injuries are…..I have no way of knowing how long it will take for me to heal enough to make the walk back there." He took in several, heavy and strained breaths, and it was then that Alice realized that if he kept talking, he would only delay his healing process.

"Try not to talk too much," she told him. He nodded, and despite what she just told him, he said, "With blood I could heal a bit faster….but I'm not going to ask that of you." Alice thought about this. If she let him consume her blood, he would be able to heal a bit quicker, not by much, but quicker than he was right then.

She moved her thick, orange hair to one side of her neck, exposing the other side and said, "I know you're going to tell me not to offer up my blood to you, but whether you want to admit it or not, you're hurt and need it. So, take it. Not just for yourself, but for me also." He stared at her, then sighed, which told Alice that she had won the argument before it even had a chance to start.

She lowered her neck down to him, and he forced his body to sit up enough to where he was able to reach her. Alice then felt as his fangs pierced the skin of her neck, and as the numbing sensation took over, allowing her to only feel the steady rhythm of her pulse as it was drained from her. She noticed that he was taking a bit more than he probably needed to help speed up his healing, which told Alice that he was more than likely starting to feel the effects of not having consumed any blood in a couple of days.

_Two birds with one stone, _she thought to herself. Shun then removed his fangs from her neck and leaned back. He still held onto his side, but he didn't appear to be in as much pain as earlier. "Thank you," he said with a slight smile, "I should be fine in no time now." He then laid back down on the ground to make sure that his injured side healed appropriately. Alice, feeling the slightest bit light-headed, laid down on the ground beside him and stared up at the stars that dotted the night sky to pass the time.

* * *

Well, my weekend has been eventful. Friday I went to a college tour day of the University I will be going to next year, and then Saturday I got to perform with their marching band in their halftime show. It was so cool! Although, I didn't like being all the way up in the nosebleed section (I don't like heights). Overall, I can't wait to go to college there and be apart of their band. The only thing that makes me sad is that I might not have time for writing fanfictions anymore. :( Oh, well, only time will tell. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	21. Friendly Liaisons

_~O~_

It was almost dawn by the time Shun and Alice returned back to the enclave. _Just in time, _Alice thought to herself as she stood by while Shun located the hidden door that entered into the enclave. She noticed that the raven-haired teen was still clutching his side; although, nowhere near like he had been earlier. On the walk back to the enclave, Alice had asked him several times if he was sure that he had healed enough to make the trek back.

Naturally, he said he was. "You should probably lay down once we get inside," she suggested, "just to ensure that you heal up completely." Shun glanced over his shoulder at her and smiled. "I was planning on it," he told her. His hand then passed over the hidden lock, and the door swung open, allowing them entrance into the enclave. In the main room, clusters of Vampires were scattered about.

Heads turned and eyes locked onto Shun and Alice as they entered into the room, but it didn't take long for all of the attention to fade away and for conversations to resume from where they had left off. Alice felt the tiny knot of nervousness that had formed in that split second disappear; she wasn't sure what she expected to happen when everyone had suddenly turned to look at them.

But now that she and Shun were no longer the center of the room's attention, she felt a bit more at ease. Shun, on the other hand, didn't even seem to have noticed the room's reaction to their unexpected entrance. Alice followed behind the raven-haired teen as he made his way from the main room to his own living quarters. She was going with him in case he needed help with something that his injury might not allow him to do.

He didn't say anything or ask why she was following him, so Alice figured that he was fine with it. They reached the room in a matter of minutes after navigating the twists and turns of the hallways that created the maze-like hallways of the enclave. Shun stepped through the threshold of the room and immediately sat down on the edge of his bed. It was that moment that Alice realized just how tired he looked.

_He's got every reason to be, _she thought to herself as she retraced back over all of the events of that night. "Do you need anything before you lay down?" Alice asked. Shun glanced down and tugged at the shirt he had on. "Could you toss me a clean shirt from that dresser over there? This one is filthy," he said, motioning down to the dirty article of clothing he had on. Alice nodded and strode over to the dress.

She pulled open the top drawer and grabbed the first shirt her hand touched, which was a plain, white shirt. Alice then handed it over to Shun, who thanked her in return. He slipped out of the one he was wearing and threw it on the floor. Alice was about to pick it up and take it to the clothes hamper in the bathroom, when Shun stopped her. "Don't worry about that. I'll get it later," he told her.

She was about to argue with him, but saw no point in causing an uproar over something so trivial, especially after the night they had had. Alice glanced back over at Shun as he was changing shirts and caught a glimpse of his injured side. There was no doubt in her mind that his broken ribs were completely healed by now, but the large, dark bruise that covered most of his side suggested that he was still feeling some discomfort. "Are you sure you don't want anything to put on your side? Like, ice?" she asked.

Shun slipped the white shirt on over his head, and as he was straightening it out, told her, "No, I'm fine. The bruise really doesn't hurt all that much, so there's no need of going through all that trouble." Alice knew that he could be stubborn at times, so she wasn't sure if he was being honest about the injury not bothering him, or if he was just trying not to be an inconvenience to her.

Regardless, she knew now wasn't the time to question him about which was true. Instead, she said, "Alright then, I guess I'll leave out of here so you can get some rest, but if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask me for help." Alice was about to leave out of the room, but stopped short of the door when Shun asked, "What about you, though? Don't you think you should rest up too?"

She turned around to face him and raised an eyebrow up in confusion. "What reason do I need to rest? I wasn't the one who was nearly killed tonight." Shun shook his head. "No, no, that's not what I mean," he told her, "What I was talking about was if you needed to rest after I took blood from you earlier. I wasn't sure if I had maybe taken too much from you again or not."

Alice felt her face flush a bit at his concern. She turned her head to the side, hoping to hide some of the redness in her cheeks, and told him, "You didn't even take enough to make me feel lightheaded, so don't worry about me. What you should be worrying about is yourself and making sure you rest and regain your strength. Now, get some sleep and take it easy, will you?" Shun smiled and chuckled.

"Of course," he said. Alice couldn't help but smile as well as she walked out of the room. She reached behind her and grabbed the knob, then pulled the door closed until the latch clicked shut. She stood there for a moment, and her smile faded away, replaced by a thin line.

Alice had formed a plan while on the walk back to the enclave, a plan that Shun would more than likely object to and tell her that there was no reason for it. But after the encounter with the Blighted Vampire, she knew for certain that it was best if she went through with this.

Her plan was to find Sinclair and have him show her how to fight and defend herself against an enemy Vampire, just as he had done for Shun. Alice didn't like feeling as if she were dead-weight or in the way, and that night, when they had been attacked, that's all she had felt like. She had been helpless, unable to do anything, and because of that, Shun could have sustained more serious injuries, or even been killed.

Alice was tired of being unable to defend herself when her life and others were at stake. Too many times thus far she had been in those kinds of situations, and ultimately, it was a similar situation to cause her to almost die and Shun to save her life by unknowingly forming an Imprint.

If she didn't learn how to fight and defend herself, then it was only a matter of time before her presence in battle would cause somebody to get hurt, or even worse, killed. Alice shook her head in an attempt to rid her mind of those dark thoughts. She clutched her hands into fists at her side as she recomposed herself.

Then, she left the spot where she stood outside of Shun's room, and began to retrace her steps back to Sinclair's study, the same study in which her secret came into the light, and where she was humiliated and degraded. The memory of that day was still raw in her mind, and because of that, every image was still amazingly vivid, even down to the glimmer of malice in Gillfrey's eyes as he voiced his disgust at what she was.

Alice felt her eyes sting with tears, but they weren't the kind that would ever spill over; they were the kind of tears that would just wet the eyes, and then go away. She had come to like those kind, for she was tired of crying now. All crying had done to her so far was show how weak she was and cause her to embarrass herself.

_No more. I'm done crying. Now's the time that I take action and fight back, _she told herself sternly. Alice held her head a bit higher as she was filled with renewed pride in herself for what she was doing, for the action that she was taking. Before she even realized it, she had arrived at Sinclair's study.

As she stood before the heavy, wooden door, Alice felt a twinge of nervousness form within her stomach. What if the Vampire Lord didn't want to teach her how to fight? What if he didn't want to waste his time on somebody like her? She stopped herself from delving deeper into those thoughts. There was no reason for Sinclair to turn her request down unless he just didn't have the time for it.

Cautiously, Alice lifted her hand up and knocked twice on the door. A second later, it opened, and instead of being faced with Sinclair, she found herself looking at Alucard. She blinked in surprised and asked nervously, "Um, is Sinclair happen by chance in his study? There's something I need to ask of him."

Alice, now that she was closer to Alucard than she thought she had ever been, was able to notice the fine lines that were starting to grace his face; this was the first time she had ever seen signs of aging on a Vampire.

In fact, she didn't think it was possible, seeing as all of the Vampires she had encountered thus far appeared to be young and full of life. She wasn't about to say anything about it to Alucard, though; it just didn't seem like it would have been polite.

"Sinclair is in his room sleeping at the moment. I was just running by here to get something I had forgotten before heading back to my own room. But as second-in-command, I am able to take up his responsibilities when he is unable to, so you are more than welcome to speak with me," he elaborated.

Alucard hadn't been the one she had wanted to ask this of. She had wanted Sinclair, seeing as he was one of the most skilled fighters in the enclave. "Oh, it's fine. I can wait till later to speak to him. Thank you, though," she said and began to walk off, but Alucard stopped her.

"I have no idea when Sinclair will wake up. More than likely it will be sometime tomorrow night, seeing as he is not exactly in the best shape at the moment. And even then, he may be so consumed in his work that he would be unable to see you. So, if this is really important to you, I suggest going ahead and speaking to me about it, and I can try to take care of the problem. If I am unable to, then I will relay it to Sinclair the first chance I get."

Alice stood there for a moment as she thought over Alucard's words. He was right; it could be a while before she had a chance to talk with Sinclair. So, talking to Alucard seemed like the next best thing.

"Well, you see," she started, "what I wanted to speak with Sinclair about was the possibility of him teaching me some combat skills so I would be able to fight, rather than stand by helplessly. There have been too many times when all I'm able to do is hide or get myself in trouble, and because of that, others around me get hurt in order to protect or save me. I'm getting tired of it."

Alucard stared at her for what felt like the longest time before he finally spoke. "I can tell you this, Sinclair is more than likely going to be unable to help you there. It's not that he doesn't want to, but more like he can't. You see, he's already stressed enough with Gillfrey's presence here, as well as the whole thing with Zoran taking over the Society. He's got too much to focus on as it is," the second-in-command said.

Alice felt herself deflate a bit; she had had her hopes a bit too high. "Oh, I see," she muttered under her breath, "Sorry for wasting your time." She turned on her heels to walk away, but Alucard stopped her again. He stepped in front of her, blocking her way of travel.

"Hey, wait. Just because Sinclair is unable to teach you, doesn't mean myself or someone else isn't. I'm nowhere near as consumed by our current situation as he is, so I'd be more than happy to teach you some simple basics." Alice smiled. She felt a flood of relief wash over her; perhaps she wasn't out of luck just yet. "You'd really do that?" she asked. Alucard nodded.

"Of course. As second-in-command, I have a job to pick up Sinclair's slack when he's unable to," he stated. Alice smiled at the slight interjection of humor Alucard had added into his statement, but then began to wonder if he had really meant it to be a playful jab at his role in the enclave. Just in case, she quickly recomposed herself. "Thank you so much, Alucard," she told him, "but please, promise me one thing. Don't mention this to Shun."

The second-in-command appeared to be confused by this. "Why? It's not as if you're doing something wrong in wanting to learn to fight." She shook her head and told him, "It's not that I think it's wrong; I know it's not. The thing is, I know that if Shun were to find out, he'd more than likely say that I didn't need it, that he'd keep me safe. It's not that I wouldn't believe him if he were to say that, I just don't want to cause him anymore trouble."

Alucard looked at her for a moment, then nodded his head. "I understand. I won't mention it to him unless you say otherwise, and I am a Vampire of my word, so you have nothing to worry about." Alice smiled brightly and was overcome with gratitude towards Alucard.

"Thank you," she said gratefully. Alucard waved a nonchalant hand and told her, "It's nothing, really. Now, I suggest starting your training as soon as possible. How does before nightfall sound?" Alice didn't even hesitate to give him her answer. She told him, "It sounds good to me."

Alucard chuckled and told her, "You've definitely got some enthusiasm. That's a good thing. With all that's been going on, the Clan could really use some of that."

* * *

Ugh, this week feels like it will never end. -.- It's only Wednesday and feels like it should be Friday already. Sadly, it is not. I don't know if I will upload tomorrow, and Friday is more than likely out of the question too because I have a game. And Saturday I have Leo Club to help out with. So, busy busy busy. I do hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	22. Putting Up Defenses

_~O~_

Alice had been so eager to get started on her training with Alucard that she had hardly slept a wink that day. She knew she probably should have been trying harder to get some rest, especially since she would have be to fully alert during her training session as to not mess up, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't fall asleep.

Alice tried every trick in the book to try and tire herself out, from pacing around her room to counting sheep. Nothing worked. Alice, feeling defeated, sat down on the edge of her bed and sighed in aggravation. The last thing she wanted to do was do poorly during her lesson with Alucard and make a fool of herself. She took in a deep breath and said to herself, "Calm down, Alice. You'll never get any sleep if you remain worked up like this."

It was true. If she didn't calm down, then her brain would never allow her to sleep. She had to think more calming, relaxing thoughts if she wanted to get any rest. But what was there to think about that would calm her down enough to the point of sleep?

Alice pondered this for a moment. What _could _she think about? There were her friends, of course, but thinking about them only caused her to grow depressed, so that was out of the question. Her mind then, for whatever reason, drifted to Gillfrey. Something inside of her stirred, and it didn't take her very long to realize that what she was feeling was pure hatred.

She quickly pushed the Count from her mind before she ended up punching something out of anger. Alice then realized that anything she thought about would ultimately result in her either becoming depressed or enraged, perhaps even both, depending on the severity of the thought. Alice groaned and flopped back on her bed. The silk, plush comforter slightly engulfed her small frame, surrounding her in a sea of smooth, warm fabric.

She closed her eyes, wishing that the comforter could wrap itself around her mind and lull it to sleep. She remained like that for a while, thinking that if she kept her eyes shut long enough, the darkness that the back of her lids provided would be enough to force herself into a slumber, but it didn't work; she was still wide awake. Alice opened her eyes when she heard the sound of somebody knocking on her room door.

Confused, she sat up from her bed and strode across the room to the door, which she opened enough to peer through to the outside. Standing in front of the threshold was Alucard. Alice raised a brow and asked, "What is it?" The second-in-command gave her a skeptical-look and said, "It's an hour before dusk. I told you we'd begin your training session at this time."

Alice felt her eyes grow a bit wider. Was it really already that time? She had no clock or watch in her room, so she had no way of knowing for certain. "Is it really?" she asked. Alucard nodded. Alice couldn't believe that she hadn't slept a wink since retiring to her room for the day, the time in which Vampires were supposed to sleep.

"Well," she said to the second-in-command, "let me get changed into something more suitable real quick, okay?" He nodded and Alice shut the door to her room. She strode over to the dresser, which had been filled with clothes for her to wear upon her arrival at the enclave. There was nothing really fancy about any of them; just a bunch of plain, one-colored shirts and jeans. But there were other articles of clothing she had been given as well, such as a black tank-top and gym shorts.

Alice decided that those two things would do for her upcoming training session with Alucard, so she quickly slipped into the new set of clothes. They were a bit loose, but not by much; they were probably a size bigger than she normally wore. Although, she couldn't really complain, though. At least Sinclair and his Clan had _bothered _to get her some new clothes, rather than letting her wear the same clothes she had been in the night she almost died.

Alice felt her stomach muscles ache in the spot where she had been impaled by an enemy Vampire, despite the fact that the wound had long been healed up. She placed her hand on her aching abdomen and could feel her pulse throbbing beneath her fingertips. Even though the injury was gone, it was almost as if it were still there, lurking around beneath the surface of her skin.

She thought back to that night, and how that injury had altered not only her life, but Shun's life, as well. It had been in the name of saving her life that Shun had given his blood to her, unknowingly forming an Imprint between them, due to the fact that he had already consumed her blood.

That wasn't all, though. His blood had also awakened something else, something that had been lurking in Alice's blood for her whole life, something that she didn't even know she had; her Vampiric nature that had been sealed away hundreds of years ago by her ancestor, Arthur Gehabich. By consuming Shun's blood, Alice's hidden nature was able to resurface after being locked away for hundreds of years.

She jumped suddenly as she was torn away from her thoughts by a constant rapping on the door. "I've heard stories about how it takes women forever to get ready, but could you please hurry? We only have a little bit of daylight left," Alucard said impatiently through the door. Alice rolled her eyes and opened the door. By the surprised look on Alucard's face, he obviously wasn't expecting her to respond so quickly.

"I'm ready, thank you very much," she said matter-of-factly. Alucard blinked in surprise a couple of times before finally saying, "Very well, then, let's get a move on." He led her through the maze-like hallways of the enclave until they reached the Training Room. Alice remember the one and only time she had been inside this room. She had gone into it in search of Shun, and had found him inside, slashing up a sparring dummy with a knife.

He had been enraged by something that Gillfrey had apparently told him; what it was, he never said. But Alice was sure that the Count had more than likely said something about her. She followed behind Alucard into the Training Room. To her, the weapon-lined walls felt as if they had accumulated more to its arsenal, or perhaps she just hadn't really paid much attention to how much weaponry was really hung on the walls.

"Alright," she said as she approached a rack of blades, "where do we begin?" Alucard placed his hand on her shoulder and led her towards the center of the Training Room, away from the weapons. "First, you need to at least learn some of the basics of fighting against a Vampire. Hand-to-hand is the most common form of combat with our kind; being skilled with a weapon is just something that gives you a bit of an edge from time-to-time. Now, I want you to copy my movements," he instructed.

Alucard lifted his hands and moved them around in slow, graceful motions. Carefully, Alice copied his moved, which, she quickly realized, were repetitive and followed a pattern. It didn't take her long to pick up on the routine enough to where she didn't have to watch Alucard's movements. The second-in-command noticed this, for he told her, "Alright, now, I want you to keep doing that, but pick up the speed of your movements."

Alice raised an eyebrow at him and wondered what doing these same motions would accomplish, but she didn't question him; he _was _helping her, after all. So, she picked up her pace, and as she did the same movements over and over again, she couldn't help but ask, "What exactly is this that you're having me do?" Alucard didn't say anything except, "Keep doing it."

She didn't even have a chance to respond before he lashed out at her with a clawed hand. Alice felt her eyes grow wide; he was attacking her! However, without realizing it, she had continued to do the movements as he had instructed her, and when she did, her hand came up and blocked the force of his attack before his claws had a chance to cut into her. Alice stared at what had just happened before her eyes.

She had stopped his attack, and something as simple as that had amazed her, for before that moment, if that had been a real life-or-death situation, she would have been dead. Alucard took a step back and told her, "That's a simple blocking form. Vampires, at least, those that you're more likely to encounter that will attack you, fight with the same style.

They are more on the offensive than defensive, so if you're able to defend yourself well enough, then the chance of you sustaining an injury is fairly low. Now, if you were to encounter a Vampire who has training in fighting, such as any of the members of this Clan, then defense won't matter. They're attacks will be more planned and organized, rather than random or blind, but we'll get to that later on. For right now, you just have to be able to hold your own in a fight."

Alice nodded and glanced down at her hands and arms. A red mark had started to form on her forearm where she had stopped Alucard's attack, and she had a feeling that a bruise would pop up eventually. But she would rather have a bruise than a hole ripped into her chest.

"Okay, let's continue to work on that blocking technique I showed you until you have it completely down," Alucard said as he turned to face her again. Alice nodded and readied herself. The second-in-command charged at her again, slashing his clawed hands at her in a blind fury, while Alice continued to execute the technique that had been shown to her.

And each time she moved her hand, she would end up blocking another of Alucard's attacks. He would try and bring his claws down on her, and she would bring her hand up and stop him, and so on. They performed this intricate dance for quite some time, and as the time passed, Alucard's attacks would become faster, which caused Alice to have to pick up her own pace.

He was trying to push her, trying to see how far she could go until she messed up, but Alice felt as if she could do this all day. She wasn't the least bit winded from the constant blocking of attacks. Although, her arms were a bit sore from taking the blunt force of Alucard's hits. The second-in-command suddenly jumped back, putting distance between them.

Alice saw he was sweating a bit, while she, on the other hand, hadn't even broken a sweat. He told her, "I think that's enough for today. You've picked up on blocking fairly quickly, but there's still a lot more you have to learn before you are able to hold your own in a fight. Another lesson the same time tomorrow?"

Alice nodded to answer the second-in-command's question. Although, she really wished that he would continue their training lesson now, but she understood that Clan members were starting to wake up, and that he had duties to attend to as well. "Why are you even bothering to teach her?" a familiar, icy voice asked from Alice's left. She turned and met Gillfrey's steely gaze.

Her body went rigid, as if she had been submerged in ice, and she wished for nothing more than to just vanish into thin air. Alucard, who had tensed up at the sight of Gillfrey, said surprisingly calmly, "Because she deserves to learn as much as anyone else." Gillfrey barked a humorless laugh. "Please, tell me you're joking," he said with a wry grin. Alucard narrowed his violet eyes at the Count and said, "No, I'm not. She has every right to want to learn how to defend herself."

Alice felt a sense of gratitude towards Alucard for defending her, but there was something in the way his voice sounded a bit uncertain, as if he were afraid to stand up to Gillfrey. Perhaps he was; the Count was a rather scary person. Gillfrey's smile fell and he narrowed his eyes at Alucard. "Do you remember what I told you about remembering your place, half-breed?" the white-haired Vampire asked harshly.

Alice saw as Alucard tensed up further. The second-in-command cast his eyes down and adverted his gaze away from the Count, a sign of submission. She couldn't believe how easily Alucard had rolled over after hearing those few words, and it made Alice wonder just what Gillfrey may have said to the second-in-command to get such a reaction. The Count strode up to Alice, his eyes looking down on her in disgust.

"One such as you really doesn't need to learn how to fight. You already have not just the blood of a killer in you, but Vampire blood as well, and that's a bad combination," he said, his voice full of malice. Gillfrey then left it at that and turned sharply on his heels as he left out of the Training Room.

"I really need to go and make my rounds," Alucard said and left out of the room hastily, leaving Alice alone. She stood there and thought over what Gillfrey had said.

_"You have not only the blood of a killer in you, but Vampire blood as well." _If the Vampire blood in her wasn't the blood of a killer, then what was? It then hit Alice what Gillfrey had meant; the killer's blood in her was Arthur Gehabich's.

* * *

Today was pretty fun. I ended up helping my local Lions' Clue (I'm in Leo Club) at my town's fall fest, and all the money is going to go to a good cause. So, I'm feeling pretty good right now. :) I should be able to upload tomorrow, but I also have a few things to announce. **I've been thinking about extended this story into a trilogy, meaning there would be another story after this. I have a good plot line for it an everything, but I need to know from you guys now if you want another sequel to this series before I lead up to it.** Also, my Halloween special will go into effect October 1st, so this story might be put on hold for a bit, or I might upload on it every now and then until I am finished with my Halloween special. Just a head's up. Anywho, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, so please read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	23. Tainted

_~O~_

Zoran paced around the Grand Hall, his eyes taking in what was now his. There were bare spots on the walls, places where pictures of the previous Counts and Countesses had once hung. He had had them removed, a sign that clearly stated that the Society no longer ruled, that he was now the one in charge.

In fact, he had removed almost every trace of the Society's influence in the stronghold. He took down pictures, burned documents that were hundreds of years old, and so on. If it was something restricted to the Society, it was now gone, fallen like the Vampiric government itself.

This was all a part of Zoran's elaborate plan, of course. He needed to show to those who might try and oppose him that he was now the one calling the shots, that if he could erase the Society from existence, then he was somebody to be feared and taken seriously. And there had been little opposition so far.

After the initial taking of the Society's stronghold, Zoran had instructed Alexander and Jessie to go out and find any surviving members of the fallen government, whether they be members that were lucky enough to survive that attack, or even relatives of members. His two loyal subjects did as they were told, and didn't disappoint. They had brought back a small group of survivors that had been hiding away within the bowls of the stronghold.

Fear filled their eyes as they remembered the massacre that had beseeched their fellow comrades. Zoran sat down in the throne that had belonged to Count Gillfrey and looked down upon the survivors. "There must be some reason that you all survived, don't you think? Why were your twisted lives spared, while everyone else perished?" he asked rhetorically.

Nobody answered, but that didn't matter; Zoran hadn't expected them to say anything back. He crossed his legs and smiled, but the smile was anything but warm and kind. It was the kind of smile that belonged to somebody who was messed up in the mind, somebody who was beyond sadistic. "I'll tell you why. It's because you were meant to swear your fealty to me and serve beneath my name," he stated calmly.

There was no presence of humor in his voice; he was completely serious. The survivors exchanged glances at one another, their expressions growing more worried by the second. Zoran ignored this and stood up from the stolen throne.

As he descended down the small flight of steps before him, he said, "And I must say that, by this happening, I am very fortunate myself. You see, the two that serve me now are unable to carry out all of the tasks that are needed for my final plan to go into action. They simply just do not have the manpower or numbers to do what needs to be done. Now, you lot, on the other hand, are members of the Society, some of the most powerful and revered Vampires in the world. With your help, I'd be more than able to achieve my goals. So, what do you say? Will you join me and help make this world a better place?"

Silence hung in the air as Zoran awaited their response. The survivors glanced back and forth at each other, waiting to see if anyone had the courage to speak. Finally, one of them stepped forward. By the crest that the Vampire wore on his uniform, Zoran was able to identify him as one of the higher-ranking members, meaning that he had been closer to the Count than most.

"I refuse!" the Vampire shouted. Zoran narrowed his eyes and took a step forward, in which, the challenger took a step back. "And who just might you be?" Zoran asked calmly. The Vampire looked around nervously before finally saying, "Langley. What's it matter to you, though?" Zoran's lips curved up into a wry grin. "I just like knowing the names of those who I'm about to kill."

Langley's eyes widened at the realization of what had just been said, and he started to try and make a run for it, but Zoran didn't give him the chance. He lifted his hand and sent forth a beam of darkness. It flew through the air and impaled Langley's body as if it had been a spear. The Society Vampire stumbled and pitched forward, landing on the marble floor with a hard thud. Zoran called back the power that he had sent out to do the deed.

The darkness snaked around his wrist and all the way up his arm, tensing as it waiting to strike again. "Now," Zoran said to the remaining survivors, "does anyone else wish to do the same? If so, then please, be my guest. You're more than welcome to voice your opinions and beliefs before me. Although, if you do, they might be the last words you say."

The survivors were shaking in fear, and their eyes displayed pure terror. Zoran got a sick satisfaction in seeing the high and mighty Vampires of the Society trembling before his awesome power. "Well? I'm still waiting to hear whether or not you will serve me," he said impatiently. Zoran lifted his hand, and the tendril of darkness that was wrapped around his arm shivered in anticipation.

It hungered to kill and taste more blood. One of the survivors, a female, dropped to her knees and said, "I swear my fealty to you! Just spare me!" Tears poured from her eyes. Zoran wondered how rare a sight it was to see a Vampire from the Society crying. He figured it wasn't something that happened everyday, so he decided to enjoy it while it lasted. "Anyone else?" he asked.

One by one, the surviving members of the Society dropped to their knees and swore their loyalty to him. They all sat there, kneeling on the floor and trembling like the scared animals that they were. Zoran removed his gaze from the survivors and looked up to see Alexander and Jessie standing on the far side of the room.

Alexander, who was grinning wryly, gave a nod of approval. Zoran knew that something was wrong with the blond-haired Vampire, that something was messed up in his mind. But it was Alexander's insanity that made him a valuable asset. Jessie, was quite the opposite.

Unlike Alexander, she appeared less comfortable in her current situation, and it was quite clear that there times when she didn't want to do something. _That needs to be changed. Such uncertainty and incomplete loyalty could lead to her betraying me, and I can't have that, _Zoran thought to himself.

He would have to change her mind if he wanted to keep her around. He turned his attention back to the survivors and said to them, "Excellent choice. And now that you know where your loyalty lies, I have a bit of a task for you. You all are to go with Alexander and bring back to me as many Blighted Vampires as possible."

The survivors looked at him as if he had gone insane. "Blighted Vampires! Why on Earth do you want those filthy things?!" the female, the one who had been first to submit, asked. Zoran looked at her and said flatly, "It's all a part of my plan. Now, you can either obey orders, or you can meet the same fate as your friend Langley. Your choice." The survivors slowly turned around and made their way to Alexander.

Zoran thought of something and called out to them, "Oh, and don't even think about trying to run while you're with Alexander. If he even thinks you have intentions of fleeing, he'll kill you on the spot." Alexander smiled wickedly at the survivors and nodded his head to show that it wasn't a bluff. "Now, go. Bring back as many of those Blighted Vampires as you can before dawn," Zoran said as the group left out of the stronghold with Alexander leading the way. That now left him and Jessie alone.

"Jessie," Zoran said, "follow me. I have something that I need to discuss with you." The girl looked unsure as she followed behind him. Jessie wasn't dumb; she knew better than to run or disobey an order, despite what her instincts may have been telling her. Zoran stopped walking and turned around to face her. The two of them stood in the middle of a hallway.

Dim lights from torches in the walls casted shadows over them, while still providing enough light for them to see. "What is it that you need to discuss?" she asked. Jessie shifted nervously back and forth on her feet. Zoran began to pace around her, keeping his one good eye locked onto her.

"There is no doubt in my mind that you would ever think about betraying me, but I do know that you don't like what you're doing. I've seen it in the way that you work when I have given you a task. Normally, you make Alexander do the bulk of the work, or you do none at all. I can't have that Jessie. I need everything going smoothly and accomplished to its fullest potential to achieve my plan."

Jessie cast her eyes down to the ground, avoiding Zoran's steely gaze. "I'm sorry," she said, "I'm sorry that I can't help that I don't like what I'm doing. Can you really blame me, though? Can you blame me for not liking when we have to kill others without a solid reason, other than it being a part of your plan? A plan, in which, neither me nor Alexander know a thing about? You know that I only sided with you to save myself. I did this in my best intentions, to make sure that I lived."

Zoran could see Jessie was trembling in fear. She was obviously afraid that, by voicing her true feelings, he would kill her on the spot. But that was quite the contrary. Zoran stood in front of her and said, "There is too much good in your heart, and it's hindering your full potential. That needs to be changed."

Zoran grabbed onto her shoulders and pinned her against the wall. Jessie cried out and instinctively struggled against him. But Zoran was much stronger than her, so no matter how hard she tried, she wasn't about to break free from his hold. "We're going to have to put some darkness into your heart," he said into her ear. When he did so, he felt Jessie tense beneath his hold, but she continued to struggle nonetheless.

"Let me go!" she screamed. He tightened his grip on her shoulders to the point that he was sure that it was causing her pain. "This is not only for my benefit, but your's as well, Jessie," Zoran told her. He then brought his hand to her forearm and cut open her skin with his sharpened nail. Blood poured from the wound, and the sweet, coppery scent wafted throughout the hallway.

The smell was enough to engage Zoran's Vampire instincts, causing his fangs to protrude and his mouth to salivate, but consuming Jessie's blood was not his task. Instead, his hand hovered over the wound he made, and little tendrils of darkness flowed from his fingertips.

They snaked their way down to the gash in Jessie's arm and dug beneath her skin. She screamed in agony as the darkness entered her body. "I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I can't have half-hearted work done in my name," he said and let go of her.

Jessie crumpled onto the floor, where she writhed and wailed as the darkness fought its way to her heart. Her back then arched and her body went still. Her eyes were wide and filled with pain, but they gradually grew a shade or two darker; the darkness had done its job and taken root in her heart.

Slowly, she laid back down on the floor, no longer flailing, and looked up at Zoran with eyes that were only a few shades lighter than black. "Now," he said while looking down at her, "you are somebody worthy to serve me." Jessie's lips turned up into a wicked smile as she said, "Indeed, my Lord."

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A little Zoran chapter for you all (you thought I forgot about him, didn't you?). Well, I didn't. :p I should be able to update tomorrow, but if I don't then Tuesday I am starting on my Halloween special. Anywho, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, so read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


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